The New Town Alpha
by lithiumvalentine
Summary: When Deaton calls two wolves whom he has a past with, will they clash with the Beacon Hills pack or help them to defeat the threat looming over all of them? And will the Alpha She-Wolf find more than she bargained for in the damaged Alpha, Derek? Let's read on. - Derek/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Hi all! This is my first attempt at a Teen Wolf fic and I've decided to set this one after the events at the conclusion of Season 2 so basically this is my version of Season 3 starring my own OC characters plus the usual cast of misfits. **

**Enjoy and let me know what you think! **

_XoxoxoxoxoX_

"So, what do you think of this place?" he asked me with an enthusiastic nudge to the side. I shrugged disinterestedly and continued to stare out the window as the small town passed by.

"It's alright, I guess. Just another small town." I replied quietly.

"Yes, it is small but this is our permanent home now! Isn't that exciting? No more moving around, we can finally start to lay down some roots here, make a real go of it for a change."

I sighed deeply. "If you say so, my love." I wished with all my might that I could be as elated as he was about moving here, I really did, but the promises of permanency and stability in our lives never seemed to last as long as we hoped. Trouble often had a way of following us to whatever city or town we left for. "So did he give you the address for the new place?"

"Obviously! What, do you think I was just going to drive around town, guessing?"

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Oh hush! We'll be there in about five minutes and then he said he wants to see us about something. We're only a block away from his surgery."

"I still think this is all a little suspect. I mean, why now, after fifteen years with no contact does he decide he simply _needs _us in Beacon Hills? I feel like there's something bigger to all of this than his wanting to catch up with old family acquaintances."

"You're always so down and negative, Scarlett! Why can't you think positively, like me, and see this as a brand new start? There's so much potential for us here, regardless of what he wants from us, if indeed he wants anything at all. Just loosen up and stop judging a book by its cover, okay?"

"If you say so, my love." I repeated, deadpan. "But you know my reasons; I just want you to keep that in mind."

"Duly noted my benevolent dictator!" he replied cheerily. _Can nothing dampen your spirit Nicholas? Probably not. How envious I am of you… _

As promised, five minutes later we were pulling into a quiet street on the outskirts of Beacon Hills. Certainly wasn't what I had had in mind when Nick had said we'd be setting sail for the grand west coast; I had envisioned more sun and surf, this house (or cottage more like) was something out of Twilight. _My God, how I hated those stupid books! _It was a small, two storey affair, all white with a green roof and blue shutters. The garden was neat with lots of little flowers growing in sporadic bunches around the yard. I could practically hear Nick's heart beating out of his chest with excitement. Oh, that's right; I could hear his heart beating with excitement. For some reason, he had always loved the quaint charm of small towns and our newest residence in a long line of homes was right up his alley.

"Calm down before you wet yourself, Nick, I don't need to explain that to the neighbors." I smirked as he parked the car in the driveway.

"But it's just so adorable! I mean, it's like something out of a fairy tale!" he squealed with delight, jumping out of the car and racing for the front door.

"I swear to God, you're almost too gay to function." I muttered, knowing he could hear me anyway. A quirk, a benefit of our peculiar condition, you could say. The little air head, however, had left me to carry out four large suitcases from the car without as much as a backward glance. "No, that's okay, I got this, don't worry about helping or anything."

"Thanks, glad you understand." A breathless reply floated past my ears. I shook my head and unloaded our car, walking through the door easily enough with the last of our belongings. Stepping into our new commode, I could see why Nick was so worked up. Well, only a little. The colours were soft and bright; everything was neat but in the small space in felt cozy. Very story-book cottage. I heard Nick's heartbeat pounding away joyously in the upstairs portion of the house, assuming this was where our bedrooms were located. I trumped up the stairs and found that Nick, indeed, was adoring the drapes and bed in his room that the movers had set up a few days prior. It was only when I dropped his two suitcases on the floor with a loud _thud _did he turn around to acknowledge my presence.

"I'm in love!" he cried. "I'm in love and I'm never leaving this room!"

I smiled fondly at him and shook my head. "We've been here all of five minutes and you're going to tears about this place! Honestly, Nick what am I going to do with you?"

A contented sigh left his lips as he collapsed luxuriously on his bed. "Just love me and feed me, that's all I ask."

I laughed. "Easy done then. I'm going to unpack and then we should probably go and meet him before it gets too late. After all, you were the one who was so insistent on showing up on time for a change."

"If I must, I must. Be ready in about an hour?"

I nodded and walked a few feet to my bedroom door. It was pleasant enough, I suppose. Light blue walls adorned with the many pictures I'd take over the years, four-poster bed with light curtains tied back on the sides and a large window with a sweeping view of the forest bordering our new home. Yes, maybe I could get used to this place. _Maybe. _

An hour later after quickly unpacking what remained of our belongings that hadn't been sent ahead of us, we quickly changed out clothing and began the quick, one block walk to the surgery. The closer we came, the more my stomach began to tie itself in knots. Fifteen years since I last saw him and let's just say we could have met under better circumstances, seeing his face again would only remind me of that. I had tried moving on from that day but the thought of standing in the same room again with him was only adding to my already mounting reluctance to answer his call. However, without him, I may have never met Nick, and I certainly wouldn't be in the position I am today. _I'd probably be dead. _

"Calm down before you explode, love." He murmured to me gently, taking my hand in his. "I know this is going to be tough for you but I'm here, I'll keep you safe."

"You always have," I said gratefully, standing up on my toes to peck his cheek quickly before entering the small surgery. Walking in there didn't appear to be a receptionist and aside from the barking of dogs and the occasional hiss of cats, all was quiet. However, I locked in on a single human heart beat the drew nearer, the scent familiar and vague then suddenly, there he was.

"Scarlett, Nicholas! So good to see you both!" he said with a friendly smile. Despite my trepidation I smiled in return and briefly in embraced the man to whom I was indebted.

"It's good to see you again Deaton. I've missed you." I replied with surprise honest. Maybe it was something about his aura, so calm and stoic, that set me at ease, although flashes of our first encounter still preoccupied my mind.

"And I you; both of you." He said warmly as he gave Nick a hug. "Please, come round back. I have some business to discuss with you."

And there it was again; my suspicions about a hidden motive, a secret agenda bouncing crazily in my head as we followed him down a narrow hall to his office. He closed the door behind us but we all kept standing. The atmosphere changed slightly, imperceptible to any human in the room.

_But as a werewolf, you become attuned to these sorts of things. _

"I thank you both for coming. I know you have moved around a great deal over the last few years but I appreciate you agreeing to settle in Beacon Hills on my request."

"Why is that, anyway?" I asked curiously. "Don't get me wrong Doc, it's great to see you again but the last time we said goodbye was…well…you know. Why do you want us so close by after all this time?"

Deaton sighed deeply. "I'm not going to beat around the bush here. There's a storm coming our way, a big one at that, and I want to be prepared. I need your help."

"Wait, what kind of storm are we talking about?" Nick asked. This was one of the few times I had ever seen him serious about anything. When it came to our safety, Nick was always serious. "Are you in some sort of danger?"

"No, not me in particular but the town very may well be. You see, you two aren't the only werewolves in Beacon Hills. There's already an established pack in the area, seven to be exact. And they're under threat from external forces. An Alpha pack has moved into the surrounding area and is threatening to take over this pack's territory and kill them in the process. Not two months ago they scared the hell out of two of the younger betas as a warning to their alpha but he hasn't taken heed. He thinks he can take all of them on with the pack he has but they need reinforcements, wolves with more experience. And that's where you two come in."

My mouth was open and dry, and my heart was racing. I'm pretty sure what precious little color I had to my skin had disappeared completely. I felt faint and nauseous at the mere thought of it all. _A territorial war, another Alpha pack, just like before…just like before. _I felt the welling of angry and panicked tears behind my eyes and quickly tried to quash them but Nick had already pick up on my distress and was enveloping me in a bear like hug, glaring at Deaton over the top of my head.

"So that's why you asked us here? To be pawns for a pack that might not even want us around? You've dragged us into a territorial war here and we have no right to participate, we'll just be seen as another threat, to both sides involved! Don't you remember how she ended up with my family in the first place? Or what happened to them as a result? You're going to get us killed Deaton!" he snarled, so unlike my Nick, his eyes flashing icy blue and dangerous. I placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and thankfully his eyes returned to their normal deep brown. I hated the vicious wolf in Nick sometimes but it was only out to protect me. _His Alpha. _

Deaton's face had hardened somewhat but he continued in the same calm tone of voice. "Of course I remember how I found her and how she came to be with you. It's something that I don't think I'll ever to be able to forget. You were both so young and…but that is the past. This pack is not like the ones before. They're more aggressive to be sure, but they are unorganized, sloppy, more hell bent on expanding their own dominion than thinking in a straight tactical plan. You two both have infinite experience with packs of this nature and while I was hesitant to bring you two into this, there's no one else I know who can be trusted like you. Who can fight like you."

"So what about this existing pack; the one that is being threatened?" I asked in a wavering, weak voice. "What makes you think they'll want us here? After all, I'm an Alpha myself, who's to say that the pack Alpha in Beacon Hills won't want to rip my throat out the minute he finds out two new wolves are in his domain?"

Deaton's smile, so cryptic and knowing, spread slowly across his face. "This Alpha works in – well, let's just say he's a little unconventional about how he investigates new comers and all potential threats to his pack. I expect you'll catch glimpses of him or one or more of his betas in the woods near your house in the coming days but he won't outright attack you." _I hope. _"Besides, I have a feeling he may well welcome your presence soon enough. He's stubborn, but he knows when he's been backed into a corner."

"And you're definitely sure about this?" Nick asked cautiously. "You're certain that we'll be okay here? For now, at least?"

Deaton nodded solemnly. "You have my word. The second I get wind that this is getting too much and you two are in any sort of danger that you cannot handle yourselves, then I will get you away from here as quickly as I can. My colleagues and I have always had your best interests at heart and I promise you that you'll be safe here with me and the other pack."

Nick looked down at me, uncertainty written all over his tanned face, waiting for my judgment in the matter. At times like this, I loathed my birth right, wanting nothing more than to leave the decision making up to someone else for a change, someone strong and steady like Nick or Deaton, so if and when all hell broke loose, I could place the blame on someone else besides myself. I thought about all the decisions I had made over the past fifteen years, how many lives it had affected, how many lives it had ruined. Nick and I had managed this long time to stay off the grid, running away when the heat got too much, like little puppies with our tales firmly tucked between our legs. But for better or for worse, I was an Alpha, and I was sick of running, fearing every shadow and challenge, making me weak in the eyes of those wolves who dared question my power. This was not a smart idea, not a logical one, but the time for running ended now. Whether this other pack wanted our help or not, we were here and we were here to fight for Beacon Hills and its wolves. We were here to fight for ourselves. With a tortured sigh I looked up at Nick with red, gleaming eyes and I saw his face fall just a little. He knew my decision without me having to say one word. An Alpha's decision was final.

"Okay, we'll do it. But I make no promises to push this Alpha to accept our help if he rejects it, or if he runs reconnaissance on our house. Any violent overtures are to be met with similar treatment. This that understood, Deaton?" I stated with as much authority as I could muster, the wolf's rumble echoing in my chest.

"Duly noted." Deaton nodded and his regular, benign smile was back in place. "I won't push you all to introduce or integrate yourselves with the pack until you are ready or at least until they approach you upon deciding if you're a threat or not. For now, I am placing both of you in jobs around the city to get more perspective on what kind of people you are protecting and what you will be dealing with now you are here. Nicholas, I have set up a position for you at the local hospital. You'll be working with one of the senior nurses, Melissa McCall, who also happens to be the mother of one of the betas, Scott. Scarlett, I'm keeping you here in the veterinary clinic with me; I've seen how you work with animals and I could really use your assistance right now. Scott helps when he can but he's been so busy with pack business he doesn't have time anymore. If it's okay with you two, you'll be starting on Monday."

"That's fine." I answered, feeling a little overcome at how fast everything had suddenly shifted, feeling emotionally and physically drained. "If it's all the same to you, I think Nick and I will be going now. We have a lot to think about."

"Of course," Deaton said, leading us back out of his office and to the reception area. "Please, don't over think this situation. You are both strong and capable wolves and I have every faith that you will make the right decisions in the coming weeks. Until Monday, take care of yourselves."

Nick and I both left without a word, clutching at each other's hands like we had when we were children and began the short walk back to the house. It was silent but we had been together too long to not know what the other was thinking. Nick was still mad, all his cheery enthusiasm evaporated from earlier, seething just beneath the surface. He was conflicted between wanting to protect his Alpha and leave this town and staying to fight alongside his leader, who for some bizarre reason, he trusted without impunity.

I was also torn, between running away from the violent and macabre images flitting their way like a disturbing pantomime in my head and staking me claim on this town, letting every pack know I was here to stay without threat and without loss of life. Of course it reminded me of how I become the Alpha I am, through bloodshed and violence and the unnecessary and completely senseless loss of life. I was essentially back at square one in my life, unprepared for a fight and unsure of how to be the leader I was forced to be. The only difference was that this time around, I wouldn't be facing them alone; this time I had a beta. I had Nick, and this gave me some small comfort.

We finally reached our little home and although it was getting late and we were both starving, we settled for ordering pizza instead; eight of them to be exact. The pizza place wasn't so sure whether it was a prank call or not at first but with the promise of cash payment plus generous tip the pizzas arrived shortly after and we began to wolf down our subpar dinner (no pun intended.) We were seated in front of the television, watching some sitcom that barely held our attention, lapsing between ravenous hunger and brooding silence. Eventually, Nick wiped his mouth on his sleeve and turned to me.

"We can leave you know," he said quietly. I stared at him, more than a little shocked. Normally, when dangers arose for us, I had to come close to beating him into submission to get him to leave. Especially seeing as how 'in love' with the place he'd been not a few hours ago. "You don't have to stay here Scarlett. I promised my family and Deaton that I would follow you to the ends of the Earth and protect you as my Alpha. But I know what you've been through and you don't need to force yourself into this situation again. Screw Deaton! If you want to run, then we'll run together. Just say the word."

I smiled tearfully, not even realizing that I had small, fat tears running down my face as I stuffed myself with greasy pizza. _How attractive. _"Oh Nick, I don't know where I'd be in this world without you! I know you want to protect me but I want to be able to protect you too. I'm not sending much of a message as an Alpha she-wolf if I'm uprooting us and running all over the country to escape our problems. No, this time, I'm standing and I'm fighting for my one man wolf pack," _That got him smiling again. _"And it's my job as your Alpha to protect you. We're not running anymore. We're here standing as the wolves we are and we're not going down to anyone without a fight. Not this time and not ever again."

Nick stands up off the couch and applauds with cheers of 'Bravo' and 'Encore', while I aim the empty pizza boxes at his head. Nick may have his serious moments but he's such a big child that even in moments like this, he can barely restrain himself. "Way to ruin the moment jackass, I really had an _Independence Day _speech going there!"

"My apologies madam Alpha but truly, that has to be one of your finest moments in Alpha-dom."

"I'm not sure if that was a compliment or an insult."

"Take it as you will, I'm just proud that you've decided to stand up and take charge. It's something you've had to come to on your own, and it just shows what a big girl you're becoming."

"You remember you're only two years older than me right? Stop talking to me like I'm a baby!"

"Aw, you'll always be the cute little, traumatized ball of fluff that was dropped into my lap all those years ago. You'll always be my little sister and my big, bad terrifying-at-times Alpha."

"Whatever you say, my love." I mutter affectionately before letting out a huge yawn and glancing at the clock. It was now 10.30pm and I felt wrecked, like I had just come out of a full moon shift. "I'm exhausted. How about we call it a night?"

"Oh, I know why you're so keen to get to bed!" Nick said slyly, draping myself dramatically over my lap and then pretending to writhe in pleasure. "'_Oh yes! I submit to you, oh God, more, more, oh God yes, I need you!' _You just want to have sexy dreams about your mate again!"

I shoved him off my lap playfully and giggled as he dropped on the floor with a very unmanly squeal. "That's not it at all! I'm seriously over those stupid dreams. And they're so not a vision of my mate, it's just because I haven't gotten laid in –"

"Eighteen months, three weeks, four days and roughly five minutes." Nick sang obnoxiously, still face down on the rug. I gave him a swift kick to the ribs for good measure. "Oh come on Scar, you know I'm joking! You're right; it's just a figment of your horniness."

"I hear that. Come you obnoxious shit, let's get some shut eye. I have a feeling we won't be getting much of it in the next few weeks."

I helped Nick off the floor, only made harder by the fact he was still giggling like a school girl, and we headed upstairs to our separate bedrooms. I quickly disrobed and pulled on an old pair of gym shorts and a tank before slipping beneath the cool covers and switching off my light. I turned over to stare out my window; the curtains still left open with the view of the woods. I sat bolt upright when a flash of gold appeared in the bushes before disappearing completely. I shook my head exasperatedly before slipping out of bed again and opening the window just a fraction so I could speak.

"I'm impressed. You all work rather fast; much faster than I had imagined. But please tell your Alpha that my beta and I are no threat to you. We're here in peace, nothing more. But if you don't believe me, tell your Alpha to ask Deaton for details." I saw another flash of gold, only further away this time before the distinct sound of footsteps leaving swiftly in the opposite direction reached my sensitive ears and I smiled. Alone again, for now. I returned to bed and within seconds of my head hitting the pillow I was asleep.

_XoxoxoxoX_

_It was dark beneath the thick canopy of the trees but I could see perfectly. My bare feet fell swiftly on the cold damp ground, following a worn trail as if in a trance, memorised through countless visits. The air was fresh and sweet with the promise of rain on the horizon. But for now there was a gentle breeze making the trees whisper and caressing across my face as I moved. I lived for nights like these; especially nights like these. _

_Finally I reached a clearing ahead and I slowed my pace before coming to a stop. There was a cliff overlooking the town, all lit up in its nest of dark forests. It was so quiet out here, peaceful in knowing I was one of the few still awake in the night, placidly watching the sky so full of stars. I inhaled deeply and smiled. This was perfection that I didn't know existed until I had moved here and I didn't know how I had ever lived without it. I shifted a little on my spot and breathed in deep once again. Ah, that's the scent that I had been looking for. Soon, very soon…_

_Two strong arms encircled my waist and a strong jaw and chin rested gently on my shoulder, nose nuzzling languidly at the small space between my neck and ear. I interlaced out fingers at my front and rested back against him. Oh yes, I truly lived for nights like these. Just me and my mate, together and at peace. I let a contented rumble course through my body which I felt returned by his own seconds later. _

"_You kept me waiting." I chastised softly. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to show." _

"_And miss an opportunity like this? Never." Another pleasured rumbled vibrated against my back as soft kisses were now placed where his nose had been. I let out a soft gasp. "I've been waiting for this all day. I hate having to leave you alone." _

"_You do what you have to, my love. After all, you're the Alpha. You have a responsibility to fulfil." I replied weakly, pressing my back more firmly against his hard chest. I curved my lower back and hips just a little and…BINGO! _

"_And that just turns you on, doesn't it?" he growled seductively, pressing forward and I can feel just how much he hates not having me at his side. I let out a growl of my own and spin around in his arms. His facial features are vague and distant, like their hidden beneath a veil but his eyes are blood red in the night and I feel my own begin to change the sight of them. The smell of him, all over me and in the air has driven me insane for hours and now I finally have him right where I want him. I thread my hands through his dark hair and bring his face down to mind for an intense and brutal kiss, all teeth and tongue and snarls that only serve to drive my need higher. _

_He backed us up quickly to one of the picnic tables, hoisting me up to perch on the edge effortlessly while he stood between my spread legs, pressing impossibly closer but never close enough. The scruff of his chin scratched deliciously against my skin as he moved away from my lips to nip and suck at my neck, making me mewl to the sky, head tossed back. Suddenly the air was too warm, clothing to constricting and his leather jacket had to come off, like yesterday. I tore at his clothing, managing to drag away his jacket and shirt in seconds, only briefly breaking our lips to skin contact. I dragged my sharpened claws down his pectorals and flexing abs, drawing rough growl from his lips, now revealing sharpened fangs. My own jacket and shirt, bra and all, followed suited shortly after, and I shivered in the cool air, only to completely surrounded by his heat and scent once again. As he explored my chest with renewed gusto I took an opportunity to bite down hard on the juncture of his neck and shoulder, all of succulent display for me. I felt the tang of his blood in my mouth before pulling back to watch the mark fade and heal, licking over it aggressively for good measure. He howled wantonly against my tightened nipples and I screamed. So good, always so good. No one could light my very being on fire like he could, and no one else would ever be able to. He had ruined me for others, just as it was intended. _

_Soon the kisses, licks and nips began to move steadily upward until his lips reached mine again, all growls and snarls and insurmountable pleasure. Without leaving each other's lips, hasty hands and claws tore at jeans and underwear until there was nothing left but bare skin, sweat and the passionate labour breathing between us. I felt the blunt head of his cock nudging at my entrance and I keened needily as he rubbed it up and down my clit torturously slow. _

"_Please, no teasing! I need you! Please!" _

"_Beg for it!" he growled out against my neck, eyes aflame. _

"_Oh God, please! I need it so bad; I want you to fuck me until I can't speak, until I can't howl, until I can barely walk! Just fuck me already!" That seemed to be enough for him as he surged forward in one powerful thrust, burying himself in me to the hilt. Both of us threw back our heads and roared into the night. _

_He set the pace, fast, thorough and completely animalistic. His hands grasped my hands hard enough to pierce the skin, the pain and pleasure mixing perfectly as he slammed into me time and time again, my own hips rising of their own accord to meet his. I felt the table beneath my begin to shake and sway, creaking under the punishment we were inflicting on it and ourselves. He seemed to realise this and before I knew it, I was pinned to the ground with both my clawed hands pinned above my head in one of his as his assault continued. The sweat that had accumulated on our bodies gathered the dirt on the ground. It was filthy, it was dirty and it I was in fucking heaven. _

_He tilted the angle of his thrusts without warning, hitting the spot within me that was making me see stars. _

"_Close, c-close!" I stuttered, digging fingers and claws in the back, hoping to mark and draw blood. _

"_Yes! Come on, cum for me. Tell me who you belong to!" he rasped in my ear, driving harder and faster into me. _

"_You, only you!" _

"_Say it louder!" _

"_Oh f-fuck! You, only ever you. I'm yours!" _

"_Yes!" he roared as my orgasm overtook my body with a shuddering, earth shaking force and my back arched off the ground, rubbing grit and sweat against his chest. With one final growl he bit deep and vicious into my shoulder as his hips stuttered and he filled me with his seed. My mouth fell open into a permanent silent scream, completely spent and sore but sated and content…for now at least. You had to love a wolf's recovery time. _

_Still connected, he gently licked the bite mark on my neck although I already felt the skin knitting back together. I hummed happily in the back of my throat, nuzzling the side of his face with mine and relishing the smell of sweat, sex and his pure essence beneath it all. Soon enough his lips returned to mine for a slow, sensual kiss that belied our rough activities only moments ago. He pulled back, starring down at me tenderly and I adored that only I would ever get to see him this way. _

"_I didn't hurt you, did I?" _

"_You seem to forget what we are, my love. I think I'll recover just fine." _

"_Well, as long as you're sure." One slower kiss to my lips before he pulled back. "Mine." He murmured against my lips. _

"_Only yours." I replied, leaning up for another taste of his lips…_

_XoxoxoxoX _

…Before I felt my back hit the soft contours of my mattress. I sprang up again, eyes darting wildly around my dark room before I realised that, once again, it had all been a dream. I sighed, drawing my knees up to my chest and placing my head in my hands, trying to calm my heart rate. That had to have been the most vivid dream yet; certainly before it had never extended to post sex cuddles and tender kisses. The dreams had been increasing in frequency of the last three months, almost to the day that Deaton had called us to come to Beacon Hills. Either I needed a good psych evaluation or I needed to get laid. Not necessarily in that order.

Whatever, it was just a dream, a stupid, horny, beautiful dream that had left me in a lather of sweat and probably stinking to high heaven, probably enough for the resident pack to smell me from here, wherever they were. I sighed again, stretched my legs and pushed away the remaining blankets and got up to take a long, cold shower. I didn't even so much give a second thought to my open window, a light breeze billowing into the overheated room…

And maybe if I had realised that my window had been closed when I fell asleep, then maybe I would have noticed another distinct scent under the smell of my own sleep-induced orgasm. Maybe I would have questions how someone had snuck into my room without my knowing and left again without so much as a trace. Maybe I would have panicked a little, gone Alpha on their ass and tracked them down…

And maybe if I had glanced over my shoulder to the mysteriously opened window with the lingering scent of a stranger in my room, I would have seen the glaring red eyes standing stark against the darkness of the encroaching of the woods that followed my back out the door…


	2. Chapter 2

**Hola! So glad those of you how faved, followed and reviewed the story thus far approve of it – I aim to please after all **** Anyhow, here's Chapter 2 with the appearance of more familiar faces. **

**Enjoy and review responsibly! **

_XoxoxoxoxoX_

Time seemed to move quickly in Beacon Hills and for that I was grateful. Some towns lagged behind regular time, both mentally and literally, so this was refreshing. The people of the town were friendly enough but still distant as Nick and I were, after all, the newly arrived strangers in a town full of strange people.

Nick was enjoying his time at the hospital with Melissa, who was still struggling apparently to come to terms with her son's condition so Nick more than a little overwhelmed her when he told her one day that he and his adoptive sister had a similar affliction and if she had any questions to come and ask us. She's been texting the both of us at least three times a day since.

Working with Deaton was much more satisfying than I could have hoped for. Of course, it was sad working around dying animals occasionally but Deaton and I healed them as best we could, even taking away some of their pain temporarily. I still felt a tear to my eye every time it had to be done. We fell into an easy, unspoken camaraderie and thankfully no subject of how we came to know one another was ever brought up to fill the sometimes quiet voids in the clinic. That was something neither of us wanted to relive any time soon.

The only constant since we had arrived were the nightly glimpses of a beta's eyes through the shrubs, bushes and trees, their scents lingering and making no effort to conceal the fact that they were there. It had almost become a sort of amusement for Nick and I of an evening, sitting in the dark of one of our rooms, watching the window intently and then trying to guess who our little stalker for the night would be. So far there had been four constant nightly companions making appearances; three boys and a girl, all of whom seemed to be in their late teens. One memorable occasion had us witness a fleeting vision of red Alpha eyes and where Nick fell off his bed in shock. The scent that lingered afterward was uber-masculine; all burnt wood, old leather and pine with some cologne underneath it all that actually had Nick shouting after his retreating footfalls, "Hey, wait a minute! Where can I buy that cologne you're wearing? Help a brother out!" I sat stock still, just listening to the steady heart beat fade as something tick over in my mind…and in my core…the familiarity of the scent, like home that you hadn't seen in a while. This was all completely ridiculous, of course! I simply put it down to lack of gentleman attention and thought nothing more of it. Every night when the young eyes returned, I made the same entreaty to them as I had the first night: we were of no threat, we were here to help and if they had their doubts to ask Deaton on the subject. Whether they had asked Deaton or he had gone to them, I don't know. I never mentioned attempting contact and he never mentioned a follow up from the local pack. But despite all of this, they had left as mostly alone and no attempts to come any closer than the boundary of our house and the woods had been made.

With all the being said, it was why I found myself crouching low after coming home from a long day at the clinic to find an unfamiliar scent in my home. I was alone and Nick would not be home for hours yet, having been assigned the graveyard shift at the hospital with Melissa. I felt my eyes change as I inhaled deeply, trying to figure out which wolf it could be. To my surprise, it was a human; a human teenage boy who smelt quite similar to the wolves playing spy games in the woods. _A human in a wolf pack? There's a new one. _I could hear the frantic boy's heart beating out of his chest in the direction of the kitchen, thinking he was about to be ripped to shreds by an ambushed she-wolf Alpha. I stood up straight again and chuckled. Now this was all getting a little too ridiculous, even for me. I figured that I may as well put the poor kid out of his misery. I switched all the lights in the house on and spoke as loudly as I could.

"I know you're in here, kid. Look, I'm not going to hurt you, I promise but could you maybe come out and explain why you're breaking into my home at almost 11pm?"

I made my way to the kitchen and found, indeed, there was the boy on the floor starring up at me with cautious eyes. He couldn't be any older than the others, seventeen at most, with short dark brown hair and wide brown eyes that look like they were about to pop out of his head. Kind of adorable, in a twitchy way. I sink down on my haunches so we were at the same level. He was still so nervous, I could practically smell it so I offered him a kind smile and extended my hand.

"While you're lucky it's not closer to a full moon and I didn't go full-on Alpha on you, this really isn't how I wanted to be introduced to the members of the pack around here. I'm Scarlett by the way, Scarlett Keats. And you are?"

Slowly but without hesitation, the kid took my hand and gave it a firm shake. "Stiles Stilinski."

"You're the sheriff's kid? And you run with wolves? Huh, interesting. Come on, get up off the floor, there's no need to be crouching in a corner anymore. Maybe you can get some answers you've obviously been sent here for and you can answer some questions of my own. Want anything to eat? I'm starved."

I stood up again and made my way to the pantry.

"PB'n'J would be great, actually." I heard a significantly more enthusiastic reply.

"Coming right up." The room was silent as I made our sandwiches but somehow it wasn't uncomfortable. It was odd, the young human completely unafraid and relaxed in a strange and unknown Alpha's kitchen, looking around with interest at the house and at me. I handed him his share of the food and we began to tuck in. "So, care to explain why you're breaking and entering on a school night?"

"Well," Stiles began as he gulped down a mouth full of bread. "Boyd and Eric were called home by their parents; Isaac was staying back with Derek and Peter for more training and Lydia, Jackson, Scott and Allison were all out on a double date, so Derek decided to send me instead. And don't worry about the breaking and entering thing; it comes in handy when your father is the sheriff of this town."

I frowned a little in contemplation. "So Derek, who I'm assuming is the Alpha here," Stiles nodded in agreement so I continued. "Couldn't be bothered sparing one of his betas to do this and sent a human in without any protection in a house with two werewolves? Doesn't seem like the brightest bulb in the box really. Or the most responsible either."

"He has his fleeting moments of brilliance but you're right. I politely asked him to send someone else or even do this himself but there was some sort of threat made about teeth and my throat and painful deaths, a lot of growling involved and I kind of zoned out after that. He's such a sour wolf sometimes."

I had to giggle at that. _Heh, sour wolf. _"So what exactly did he send you here to do anyway? No offense, Stiles, but you're not exactly a threat to me or to my brother. What did this Derek hope to accomplish with you coming here?"

"Oh, he seems to think it's a little too suspicious that he can't immediately see anything wrong with the two of you and thought maybe there'd be some incriminating evidence in your house, like the basement out of Saw type shit. But I've been here a good hour and was just about to get out when you get home."

"And?"

"And what?"

"Any incriminating evidence?" I asked slyly.

Stiles laughed. Something about this kid I liked; maybe he reminded me of a young Nicholas, without the flamboyancy. "Nope, nothing! And more than a little disappointed to find no basement with chains and the like. Not even any kinky lingerie lying around! What kind of she-wolf are you?"

"So sorry to disappoint you, I'll try harder next time."

"See that you do. So, can I ask, what are you doing in Beacon Hills anyway? You're not some secret spy for the Alpha Pack are you?"

"I think if I was a spy I probably would have murdered your ass and buried you in a shallow grave out back already so no, I'm not. Besides, I'm here as a favor to an old friend, Deaton."

"The vet?" Stiles asked surprised. I nodded. "That guy is just a barrel full of mysteries! Derek doesn't completely trust him, even though his mom used to go to Deaton for were-advised before…well, I won't go into it. I like my throat in its un-disfigured state, thank you very much. How does he know you and your brother and why did he ask you here? Derek damn near went on a rampage when he found out."

I was starting to not like this Derek character more and more. _Seriously, threatening someone like Deaton and then forcing Stiles, A HUMAN FOR GOD'S SAKE, to do his dirty work? Wow, just wow. And not the good kind of 'wow'! _ My face must have darkened a little, judging by the apprehensive look that flitted across Stiles' face.

"We have some…history together, you could say. He helped me and Nick in a time of great need and neither of us would probably be alive without him or others like him. I won't go into it either. I like your throat un-disfigured as well." _There's that insane smile again! _"But about three months ago, Deaton asked as to move here, saying something about wanting us close by just in case. We had no idea about the pack here or the other Alphas that seem to be stalking around until the day we moved here and we weren't terribly impressed with him ourselves. Deaton wants us to help you get rid of them; that is, if our help will be accepted. Nick and I, well, we have experience with packs like this one and that's why Deaton called us in. He thinks we can be of value to your pack but," I made a vague sweeping gesture. "Since sour wolf out there has done nothing except stalk the woods at night, we haven't exactly lived up to our potential yet."

Stiles nodded slowly, taking all the information in, probably to relay to Derek when he left. I hoped that maybe once he heard what Stiles had to say he would stop sending teenagers to stalk my home and lay off, either to leave us in peace for good or to accept our help so we could all move past this. But judging from what I've heard about the resident Alpha, a smooth compromise seems unlikely. "So…you're not here to fight over territory?"

I sighed exasperatedly. "God, no! Honestly, I never understood why other Alphas, particularly males, think that any wolf with red eyes is ready to slit a throat to get more land. There's only my brother and I and we're certainly not looking to expand the pack anytime soon. Besides, why fight for space when you can move around freely? A lot less hassle than losing an arm because someone pissed on a tree that you pissed on first."

"Charming image."

"Thanks, I thought so too. But when you've dealt with enough male Alphas in your time, you tend to see a pattern. It's either fight for land or fight for mateship to increase power. Another long story. You might want to leave that little euphemism out though; your Alpha seems like kind of humorless son of a bitch that wouldn't appreciate a girl making fun of a man's territorial nature."

"Noted." Stiles replied with a smirk. Suddenly his phone began to buzz and hum in his pocket and he looked at the screen nervously, unsure whether to answer it or not.

"Derek?" I guessed. Stiles nodded apprehensively again, fingers twitching between answering the call and hanging up. "Give me the phone. I think I need to give this guy a piece of my mind first." I plucked the phone quickly out of Stiles' hand before hitting the answer button.

"_Stiles –"_ Came the authoritative grumble down the phone before I cut him off.

"Hello," I began sickly sweet and hyper-feminine. "This is Beacon Hills Circumcision, you flop 'em, we chop 'em, how may I direct your call this evening?"

Stiles looked like he was either going to fall flat on his face laughing or wet himself in fear over what this Alpha will do as punishment for allowing this to happen. He settled on poorly concealing snickers behind his hand, eyes wide with mirth.

"_What the fuck? Who the hell is this? Where is Stiles?" _Derek growled viciously down the phone.

"Down boy," I chastised, sweet tone still in place. "Mr. Stilinski is perfectly fine, you know, considering you sent him, a human, to break in my, an Alpha's, home in the middle of the night. Not a particularly bright plan but you're just lucky I happen to like the kid. If it had been anyone else, say, your charming self, then they may have not been so lucky. Seriously, what kind of stupid ass stunt were you trying to pull? Are you trying to get your pack killed?"

"_I did mention that sending Stiles was a bad idea –"_

"_Shut up, Peter!" _

"_Well, he did. So did I, matter of fact." _

"_ISAAC!"  
_

Stiles was still trying, and failing miserably to conceal his laughter, his whole body shaking and I'm not trying to hide one bit how absolutely pathetically hilarious this whole situation was. Whatever. I will probably pay for this later but right now I felt as though I'm getting my own back from an Alpha I'd never met for a boy who broke into my house. Felt good.

"Amusing as this is to listen to; I should probably let you all go. I'll send Stiles on his way, safe and sound, and you can go back to…well, growling I guess, that's all I can hear right now. But please keep this in mind, Derek. My brother and I are not here to fight _you. _We are here to help you fight the Alpha Pack and whether you accept that help is up to you. It's been three weeks now, we're not a threat to you and you know this. Accept our help and you can stop spying on us. Don't accept out help; we get to live here in peace without being harassed every damn night. Until you decide then, Derek, good night." And with that I hung up the phone.

Stiles now let loose a roar of laughter, doubling over and pounding the tiles on the floor with his fist while I clutched at my stomach. This situation shouldn't be so funny but it was, like two little kids prank calling the cranky old man down the street. After a good ten minutes we both come up for air panting and giggling between breaths. I smiled warmly over at Stiles.

"You'd best be on your way. Not that tonight hasn't been peachy and all, but I'd rather not have the big, bad wolf barging down my door because he can't take a joke."

"You don't know the half of it! But I'll probably be missing a head the next time you see me, he sounds pissed."

"That he did. Oh well, just tell him I overpowered you. After all, I am a werewolf so while it's still a lie, at least it's a plausible one." I suggested as we walked towards the door. How had I not noticed the old, beat-up jeep across the road before?

"Good idea. Say, can I get your number? I mean, forward, yeah, I know, but you seem like an awesome person and even if Derek doesn't want you at the 'lair' then at least I can introduce you to the others another time. I think we're gonna need someone like you around, whether Derek thinks so or not."

A little overcome by the sweet, jittery kid in front of me I gave him a quick hug before letting go. Now I wasn't the only one a little overcome, I could smell it on him. I snatched his phone out of his hand again and quickly typed my number into the contacts list before handing it back to him.

"Take care of yourself Stiles; I guess I'll be seeing you around."

"You too, Scarlett. I'll see you later." And with a parting salute he took off for his jeep, starting it after a few spluttering tries and then driving noisily down the street. I went back inside the house and closed the door, leaning against it. What a night! I would certainly have a story to tell Nicholas when he arrived home.

_XoxoxoxoX _

"You did what?!" Nick cried in disbelief. I sat on the couch more than a little stunned at his reaction as he flung his arms about wildly. I had thought that he would have sat with me and had a good laugh at the inept Alpha's expense and be happy that I had made friend in Stiles but apparently I was very wrong. Suddenly I was the eleven year old being screamed at for breaking his Spice Girls CD…_even then all the signs that Nick would grow up to be a little more 'creative' than the other boys were there. _

"Calm down, would you? Look, if anything I think that Sir Sour Wolf knows that I'm not taking this as seriously as he thinks we should be and therefore it eliminates us as a threat in his eyes. I don't see why you're getting so worked up over it!"

"You don't see?" Nick exclaimed, eyes flashing icy blue. _Shit was about to get real. _"How can you NOT see, Scarlett?! What you did was completely stupid! So yeah, he might not think we're a threat anymore but how are we supposed to be of any help to the pack now? Or to Deaton? Not only that, you could have put us in real danger!"

Okay, now I was up standing, glaring at my brother angrily. No, not me; I understood that what I had done was stupid and childish and possibly life threatening but the she-wolf? No, she was proud and was itching for more. And she did not take kindly to a beta talking down to her like she was a child. I felt the rumble of dissent echo in my chest before I suppressed it. No need to wreck the house over a stupid argument.

"Oh really?" I snapped back at him. "And how, pray tell, have I put us in danger?"

"You goaded an Alpha who is already weary of us in HIS territory! Do you not understand that? After all this time? For God's sake Scar, you SHOULD know better than this! What if you took it too far, huh? What if he's waiting for the right opportunity to take you down, take both of us down just because you don't agree with his managerial style? Does it sound like it was worth taking him down a peg now?"

_No, you're right. _"YES! It was worth it! And if Derek had wanted to kill us he would have done so already! If a seventeen year old human boy can break into our home without any assistance, how well do you think we'd fair against him? Or his betas? Huh? We wouldn't! It was harmless fun and you know what? If he doesn't accept our help then fine! It's his war and frankly I'd be pleased if he didn't drag us into it and get us killed in the process. You said it yourself, Nicholas, this town holds infinite possibilities for us; I'm simply exploring some of them, even if it means messing with a subpar Alpha!"

Nick growled and paced up and down a little more. His canines had descended, rendering his lovely olive face almost unrecognisable. Normally i would have rushed forward, pressed my small hands into his face and soothed him until he was my handsome brother again, until no more of the wolf showed on his face. But my own wolf was rather affronted that her beta, her offsider and a person so much lower on the wolf scale than herself thought he could get away with growling at her like she was some wimpy omega. Without warning, like having an outer body experience, I felt my clawed hand extended with lightening velocity to wrap viciously around his throat, throwing him against the wall with fangs beared and eyes flashing murderously.

"I will not tolerate being talked down too Nicholas; not by you and not by anyone. I am the Alpha of this pack, small as it is, and it is not up to you to question my authority. Do so again and you will feel the full extent of my displeasure." She growled out, the sound rough and inhuman. She grinned wolfishly and vindictive as Nick's face slowly and painfully transformed back to its human state, brown eyes bulging slight, breathing laboured. And that's when I took back over again. I pulled the she-wolf inwards to that dark space in me where she resided, not without some reluctance, her urge to fight still lingering in my veins. I promptly dropped Nick to the floor as he gasped for breath and I stood there in shock. It had been so long since I had lost control of myself, especially with Nick, and I realised how serious now this all truly was. Two lone wolves in a town run by a moody and irritable Alpha already under threat by God knows how many other Alphas and I had just pissed him off even more.

"Oh God, what have I done?!" I cried out, tears flowing down my face. I dropped to my knees and crawled over to Nick, drawing his head under my chin and rocking him back and forward as his breathing and heart rate evened out. "Nick, I'm so sorry! You're right, you were right! I've fucked up; I'm so sorry, please forgive me!"

I heard a little breathless chuckle leave his lips and a soft kiss placed under my chin. "You keep forgetting what I am sweetness. Nothing I couldn't have handled. Besides, that's not even the worst Alpha you've gone on my ass!"

"That's no excuse you idiot! I lost control just over a petty argument!"

"Yes, but you've admitted that you were wrong and I know as an Alpha that's hard for you to do. Look, in the future if this Derek guy makes any grand gestures like sending teens out to our house, don't bite back. We've got enough on our plate without adding him to the equation."

Many swift kisses I rained down onto his hair. "You're right. You always are. I'll be more careful from now on, I promise. Honestly Nick, at times like this I wonder why whatever gods there be decided to make me the Alpha instead of you. You're so much better at this than me."

"Oh hush," he responded fondly while pulling us up from the floor. "Scarlett you were born for this, even if the way it came about was less than ideal. You are an amazing leader and any 'insolent' behaviour on my part is for your concern and your concern only. Like I said, it's my job to keep you safe."

"And it's my job to protect my pack which," I pointed at the Nicholas sized dent in the wall. "I appear to be doing a very poor job of."

"I'm still alive aren't I? Look, it's been a tense few weeks for us and we both snapped, it happens with people like us. How about this? Since it's almost two in the morning, we hit the sack and just sleep in until whenever tomorrow? We've both got the late shift so we'll have a relaxing girls' day in tomorrow."

"I really forget how feminine you are sometimes; more feminine than me and that terrifies me."

"Not sure if compliment or insult but okay. Deal for tomorrow?"

"Deal, sounds perfect." With one last hug we made our way upstairs and into our respect rooms. I was too exhausted to be bothered with showering or pyjamas so I stripped off all my clothing and climbed into bed. I laid awake, tossing and turning, listening to the quiet whisper of the trees outside my window before my aching eyes finally fluttered shut and my body sank into the mattress with the strangely familiar and unnerving scent of old leather, burnt wood, pine and cologne floated through the room.

_XoxoxoxoX_

Almost a week had passed since I had found Stiles crouched, cowering in my kitchen and then proceeded to prank call his Alpha and besides the odd text from said human updating me on the pack's movements or the occasional mood swing of Derek, there had been no further contact. Even the night visits from the betas on the edge of the woods had stopped the night after Stiles' visit. Whether it was because Derek had sufficient evidence that we weren't a threat or having become fed up with my antics had decided not to bother one way or the other. The only constant that seemed to stick was the dreams, becoming so graphic and intense that Nick had taken to sleeping downstairs during the night, mumbling something about pheromones and sexual frustration as he stomped down the stairs. It wasn't my fault! It was as though that mystery scent had leaked into my room, night after night, and it only fuelled the frustration and graphic dreams. For a paranoid moment I had placed the blame squarely on Derek, where he had snuck into my room and rubbed himself on my bed as punishment but that seemed unlikely. Besides, I would have known if another person, human or wolf, had broken into my home again…right?

It was another Friday and Deaton had left the clinic for the night, and saying he would see me on Tuesday. I was sweeping up a little and tending to one of the dogs when I caught a scent, one that I was not familiar with. It stuck out against the stench of disinfectant, animals and Deaton's own scent. I let out a startled growl and spun around to find yet another damn teenager standing behind me; another one of Derek's pack. He looked the be the same age as Stiles, seventeen at most, with black slightly curled hair, tanned skin like Nick and a jaw line that seemed slightly off centre, like he'd been punched in the face and it had just kind of stuck there. His own eyes were glowing gold in warning, ready to defend himself if need be but his stance was not aggressive.

"You're Scarlett, right?" he asked hesitantly.

I nodded slowly. "And you'd be one of Derek's little betas right?" I flared my nostrils just a little. "But you're not one of the ones that have been visiting me at my home."

"No and technically I'm not in Derek's pack; it's a long story. But Stiles told me about you, seems to think you're some sort of superhero."

I relaxed my own stance a little and chuckled. "Yeah, that kid gets some crazy ideas when he wants to. So, you gonna introduce yourself?"

"I'm Scott, Scott McCall."

"Oh, so _you're _Melissa's son!" I said in realisation. His eyes narrowed a little and I backtracked. "Nothing suss, kid! My brother works with your mother at the hospital and Deaton mentioned that you used to work here before the whole wolf thing got serious." He visibly relaxed and sent me a small smile. "So what are you doing here, Scott? Derek sending more people to spy on me again?"

"No but he asked me to come here to tell you he wants you and you're brother to meet him tomorrow at the abandoned subway station downtown; something about the offer you made last week."

_So Sour Wolf wants to finally meet face to face? Wonderful. _"And he sent instead? Why didn't he just come himself?"

"He also mentioned something about a prank call, your throat, his teeth; I don't know, he wasn't in a particularly good mood today."

"Seems to be a recurring trend, I see." Scott laughed just a little then stopped himself up short, as if Derek could hear him having fun at his expense. "Very well, tell Derek my brother and I will be there after noon."

"Okay, I'll let him know." Scott turned to leave the room and then faced me again. "Hey, um, is it true?"

"Is what true?" I asked confused.

"Stiles said that you answered Derek's call by saying it was the Circumcision Clinic?"

I threw my head back and laughed. "Yeah, yeah that's true."

It was Scott's turn to laugh. "Man, Stiles was right. You are pretty cool."

"I aim to please; now go and tell Derek the news before he has another conniption fit. I really can't be bothered dealing with again tonight."

Scott nodded and with a wave quickly left the clinic leaving me standing there alone and now more than a little nervous. So Derek finally wanted to meet with us about the Alpha Pack? I had had previous experience with male Alphas and none had gone particularly well; I was afraid that tomorrow would be no exception. Even with Nick there, taking on a male Alpha was a daunting challenge and if he was calling us in to finish us off then we were in a lot of trouble. At the same time there was a little thrill of adrenaline surging through me at the thought of finally meeting Derek, which was odd, seeing as I had only heard him growling over the phone and in no way found any quality of the man attractive, at least from what I had heard. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and hit speed dial. Soon Nick's cheery voice filled my ears.

"Hey gorgeous, you up for an excursion tomorrow...Good, well wear something nice because we're going in and if we go down, I at least want to go down in style."


	3. Chapter 3

**WOO! On such a roll here, so happy with how this story is progressing! Once again, thank you to all those who have faved, reviewed and followed my story, it really means a lot. **

**And now without any further ado, here's Chapter Three! **

_XoxoxoxoxoX_

I woke up early the next morning despite having little sleep, a combination of orgasm-inducing dreams and sheer nerves at possibly meeting my maker today. I was really starting to regret having pissed Derek off before I'd even met the guy. It was 6:30 am and the sun was barely up, casting beautiful ethereal shadows from the woods, creating a light mist in the street in front. Having nothing better to do until Nick decided to wake up I decided to do some cooking. I love cooking, baking, anything really that involved the preparation of food and had since I was a young pup and my mother would teach me basic kiddy recipes to focus my untamed energy on something productive. Now it served merely as a stress relief and something that I only ever did when I was anxious or wound up. Two days before we had moved to Beacon Hills in fact, I had baked five cakes, six batches of muffins and made about ten different soups, casseroles and roast dinners. Nick and I had happily eaten them all of course, but it was my one tell when anything was really bothering me.

And so this is how Nick found me four hours later, covered in flour and frosting, with four cakes and a full breakfast of bacon, eggs, sausages, grilled tomatoes, toast and two steaming towers of pancakes plus fresh juice and coffee.

"A wee bit nervous are we then?" Nick asked jauntily as he piled up his plate.

"Just a little, no biggy."

"Yes biggy! We're meeting another Alpha today, one whom, I'd like to remind you, you pissed off enough that he has teenagers sending you messages rather than doing it himself."

"So this can only end well?"

"More or less," he mumbles with cheeks comically stuffed with food. "Do we have a plan if things go south today?"

"Run like hell sounds as good as any right now but this guy is so strange. Not like the other Alphas we've come across. He's calculated but he's running on raw emotion at the same time. It's odd. Besides, he could have sent all his pack to attack us that first night and be done with it. Why wait almost a month?"

"I dunno, maybe the guy's a fan of suspense."

"No, he seems way too impatient for that sort of thing. He was ringing Stiles after only a short time so that's either indication of strong pack bonds or he just doesn't like to be kept waiting."

"I suppose you get that with guys who have lived in the Big Apple?"

"He lived in New York? How do you know this?" I asked suspiciously. Nick just chuckled.

"I've been scrapping bits and pieces together from Melissa at the hospital who only has a partial picture from Scott. Seems he and his uncle Peter are the last of their family due to some tragic accident about ten years ago. His uncle is some sort of socio-path but Derek still keeps him around; apparently the guy is like Jesus, managed to come back from the dead or something like that. Peter was actually the one who turned Scott and attempted to turn another human in the pack, Lydia I think Melissa said, but she was immune to the bite and survived."

"What? No way!" I scoffed. "We both know that either the bite turns you or kills you. No one has ever been immune from it! And really, a guy coming back from the dead? It's all a little hard to believe!"

"Yes but remember that werewolves aren't supposed to exist either and yet, here we are eating breakfast."

"Fair enough. Melissa tell you anything else?"

"Well I did get some small tid bits of information regarding the other members of the pack. Seems after Derek had killed his uncle, a hunter moved into town by the name of Gerard. One nasty motherfucker by all accounts. He wasn't following any form of code and then all hell seemed to break loose on the town. Apparently Derek got his hackles all in a bunch and began trying to build a little pack of his own. Bit three teens, that's Isaac, Erica and Boyd, in a short space of time. He bit another kid, Jackson, earlier but he had some sort of adverse reaction to the bite; Melissa mentioned something about a lizard monster but it wasn't very clear. Anyway, long story short, they managed to get Jackson to turn full wolf, got rid of the hunter and all is right with the world…well, sort of. The same night that all this went down, Erica and Body got caught by the Alpha pack. Roughed 'em up a little but nothing terribly serious. More scare tactics than anything else. And that's when we come into the picture."

"Interesting," I muttered, taking in all the new information in. "So weren't they worried about other hunters coming back for retribution? After all, a wolf possibly killed one of their own, isn't it in their code or something?"

"It is part of the code but get this! There's a family of hunters here in Beacon Hills! That Gerard guy was the father and grandfather of the father/daughter team here. The father actually helped the wolves defeat him. But it gets so much better," he goes on gleefully, seeing my incredulous expression. "As it turns out, the daughter, Allison, is Scott's little girlfriend!"

"Say what?!" I cried, overwhelmed. "A hunter happily dating a werewolf? Jesus, Nick, what kind of cluster fuck have we gotten ourselves into? I mean, we're going to meet an Alpha who killed his uncle only to have him come back to life, who turns teenagers into ravenous monsters so he feels safer, turned one into a crazy lizard beast and then back to a wolf, two humans who he sends to do his dirty work unprotected and a beta who is dating a hunter? Great, just great! I'm starting to think that meeting up with this guy isn't a good idea anymore."

Nick, rather than sharing my anxieties, just laughed. "Breath, Scarlett! You're getting way too ahead of yourself. Look, Derek obviously seems a little out of his depth here, meaning he clearly hasn't been an Alpha as long as you have, or around a fledgling pack before either. As for Allison, Stiles and Lydia? Well, if they are fool-hardy and brave enough to survive a pack like this then they are clearly an asset. We'll just take this as it comes but, as always my dear, the final decision is yours."

I let out a deep breath and tried to will away the tension in my shoulders. "You're right, my love. I'm just over thinking things again. It's just that if I had known what I was setting us up for I maybe wouldn't have accepted Deaton's proposal so quickly, or at the very least charged the pups in the woods to keep them away. It all seems like more trouble than the end result is worth."

"It very well could be but again, we'll never know until we've tried."

"True enough." I glanced at the clock and saw we had another hour and a half until we had to meet Derek and I felt filthy from the caked on flour and grease and the sweat induced by fear and nerves. I was in desperate need of a shower to say the least. "Well, I should probably start getting ready; nothing says intimidating like a she-wolf Martha Stewart."

"Good call, your scent is a little more pungent them usual today." Nick said nonchalantly while dodging the spatula and spoon I threw at his head. "I've laid your clothes out on your bed; I'll see you up there soon."

I nodded and made my way upstairs, not before pausing to give Nick a sound _thwack _on the back of his stupid, pretty boy head. Just because he was gay he didn't have to act like a bitchy little queen! That was just enforcing stereotypes as far as I was concerned. I stripped completely once I got into the bathroom and stood under the steaming spray from the shower, sighing contentedly. As I washed the last hours off my body and washed my hair thorough I felt my traitorous mind flash back to the latest in the long line of 'mate dreams'. Last night's in particular had left me sitting bolt upright with actual tears streaming down my face. I'm no hopeless romantic by any stretch of the word but that dream, so lucid and vivid, had made my heart ache. The man, my imaginary mate, had been so sweet, so tender, his back against the arm of a sofa in an old house as I reclined against him, his hands drifting lazily over my pregnant belly while whispering in my ear about the pup I was currently bearing, hoping it would have his eyes but my smile or some such nonsense. It was beautiful. It was simple…_it was nothing more than a delusion. _

I had long ago resigned myself to a life of spinsterhood. That's not to say I couldn't enjoy the company of a man both in and out of the bedroom but as for a long term, committed relationship? No way. There was enough trouble in my life without bringing someone else into the equation, be it wolf or man. And to bring children into this world? Having to explain to a possible human partner that his children would become small balls of fluff every time the moon was full? Again, no way. Being alone was far easier than any relationship could ever be. There was, of course, the possibility of finding my mate one day, that one true soul who I could bond with entirely and who would ruin me for all others. It was an idyllic notion truthfully, one I had fantasized about as a pup, watching my mother and father in such blissful happiness with one another, bonded for eternity. But they were just a few of the lucky ones. The world was a large place, with many potential mates inhabiting its far corners, so most wolves never get to meet their one true mate. If you were, you souls were bonded and no other person could fill that little void in your heart once you had both recognized each other. Wolves, after all, mate for life and no substitutions were allowed. To deny your mate, once the wolf inside of you had declared its intentions, was to slowly and painfully kill yourself. Without your other half, you were nothing. But I wasn't one of the lucky ones, I probably never would be, and sadly that was okay too. Finding a mate whom you fall deeply and madly in love with is nothing more than a fairytale _and I had stopped believing in fairytales fifteen years ago_.

I eventually stepped out of the shower, fresh and clean and quickly dried myself off, deciding to let my blond hair dry naturally it waves rather than waste time with a straightening iron. Make-up had never really been a necessity for me, not to brag or anything. It was just a perk of being inhabited by a she-wolf who took pride in her appearance. Long eyelashes framed big blue 'anime' eyes, full pink lips and rather pale skin. Apparently I was short for a wolf my age, only five foot four at most, barely 5"6 when wearing heels but I was toned and athletic from the fast metabolism that also came as one of the few perks of turning into a bitch every full moon – in more ways than one. Another resigned sigh I slipped back into my bedroom and found the clothes Nick had laid out. My brother sure did know what I liked and he had picked exactly what I needed. A short black corseted dress with red and white flowers dotting its entirety. Black combat boots with a slight heel and a light denim jacket to go over the top of it all, plus a red beanie to place delicately on my head. _Not bad, not bad at all Nicholas. _I pulled my clothes and examined the reflection starring back at me. The dress certainly accentuated my figure nicely and my cleavage was impressive without being too much. The boots, jacket and beanie gave the dress an edgier look so I looked innocent enough to send the image 'a threat? Lil old me?' but at the same time look tough enough to kick ass if necessary. _Perfect. _

I heard the shower kick on and figured Nick was now also preparing for the day ahead. I walked down stairs and cleaned up the remnants of our breakfast, covering the cakes for what I hoped would be our successful return then sat to watch some television. I barely paid any attention to the Saturday morning cartoons, crossing and uncrossing my legs every few minutes while bobbing my foot up and down. I felt slightly calmer when I heard Nick finish his preparations and start descending the stairs. He appeared looking gorgeous and deadly in black skinny jeans, green muscle tee and a leather jacket with boots to match.

"Damn you fine," I smirked, sending him a wink. He took a cocky little bow.

"Why thank you kindly. And your rack, madam, would turn a gay man straight!"

"Wonderful! Well, should be get going?"

"Sure thing, you know the address?"

"Yes which is why I'm driving, and for God's sake don't give me that look!" I said exasperated as Nick pouted. "It's not like you drive a Porsche and I promise to be careful with your baby, okay?"

"Fine, I guess so! Now go before I change my mind."

We were off and down the street moments later, the both of us silent as we contemplated what could possibly be awaiting us at the subway station. In all likelihood and from what I had gathered from Derek's particular style, we were there to talk and nothing more. Or growl in his case. But still, the very real threat of an ambush attack loomed over our heads and the fact that Nick wasn't fiddling obsessively with the dials on stereo or making idle chatter was enough for me to know that he felt it too.

About twenty minutes later we were pulling up to a rusted out building, which I'm sure at night looked like the perfect scene for some teen slasher film. Freddy and Jason would certainly approve.

"Is this the place?" Nick asked.

"Well seeing as there is only one subway station in Beacon Hills, I'd say that this is it." I replied quietly, turning the car off and the getting out, still standing before the intimidating building. I wondered if this is where the pack was permanently located or if he had picked this place for that specific purpose; to frighten and intimidate. I closed my eyes briefly, breathing deep as I tried to hone in on a scent or a heartbeat that would indicate his presence. So far nothing except the lingering traces of the young betas and an older wolf, who I assumed was Derek's Jesus-like uncle, Peter. I smelled Scott, Stiles and the two girls I had not met yet, Allison and Lydia. But I could not smell Derek. I sighed and I opened my eyes, glancing at a pacing Nicholas.

"He doesn't seem to be here yet, in fact, none of them appear to be." I told him. "Let's just go inside and wait; we'll give it an hour and if he doesn't show then we'll leave."

Nick nodded a little apprehensively and following me into the swinging door that led to the rickety stair case leading to the inside of the station. A few old train cars littered the space, and from the top of the stairs I saw makeshift bed and piles of clothes. At least three or more people stayed here at a stretch. A beat up couch was against one car with an ancient, block like television resting gingerly on a milk crate.

"Well, I love what they've done with the place." Nick said sarcastically. _Ever the queen… _

"If this were a horror movie, I think we'd both be dead by now." I muttered, eyes darting instinctively for any sign of life.

"No way! I would still be alive to be the trust, wise cracking side kick of the virgin who lives till the end of the film but _you_, my dear, would be the chick getting chopped up first because her and her boyfriend, Chad, were too busy gettin' it on to watch out for serial killers."

"It scares me how much thought you've put into that scenario, it really does."

"Whatever, you love me." Nick's nostrils flared slightly, his eyes taking in the station as me reached the floor. "Smells like no one has been here for hours now! Maybe this is a set up?"

"No, otherwise we would have noticed more recent activity, stronger scents, and louder heart beats. They're still all so young, it would be odd if they could control themselves this well."

"This is true, and most of them have been given the bite, not wolves from birth."

"Right; the signs would be there but this," I made a gesture to the station. "This is practically a ghost town."

"Tell me about it," he said, wearily leaning against an empty barrel. "So, we wait?"

"We wait," I echoed and took my position next to him.

Five minutes ticked by agonisingly slow. Then ten. Then fifteen. Then half an hour.

I let out a loud annoyed huff. "Seriously, does this guy have penchant for building to an entrance or something? This is just a joke!"

"Tell me about it," Nick replied, obviously irritated at the Alpha's absence. "Maybe we should just split, he doesn't seem like he's going to show."

"You're right. Come on; let's get back to the car." No sooner than the words had left my lips did I hear a loud noise coming from the entrance on the stairs. Both Nick and I spun quickly, stances defensive as more than one scent, more than one heart beat and more than one voice reached our ears.

"I am going to kick your ass, Boyd!"

"Yeah, yeah, you talk a big game Lahey but your mouth is writtin' cheques your butt can't cash!"

"Are all boys like this when it comes to video games?"

"Apparently. And they say females are the irrational ones when it comes to obsession!"

"You're just mad because Jackson and I kicked your proverbial asses at C.O.D last week."

"Watch it, Stilinski."

_Wait a second…_"Stiles?" I called out hopefully, looking for that familiar friendly face.

"Scarlett?" he responded, completely surprised. He wasn't the only one. The group of young betas and the accompanying humans had arrived at their hideout to find two strange wolves in their midst, one an Alpha, and their own Alpha and his uncle were nowhere in sight. _What a dick! _Stiles, all smiles and exuberance, and ran forward to give me a hug. "What are you doing here? Not that it's not awesome to see you and all, you're so awesome but really, what are you doing back at the lair?"

"Well, according to Mr. McCall standing over yonder," I pointed at Scott when Stiles had stepped back. "I was to meet the sour wolf here at noon to discuss my helping you guys with your current Alpha problem but he never showed. Nick and I have been here for half an hour now. Oh, and this is my brother, Nicholas."

"Hiya." He sent them all a friendly wave.

"Wait, Derek didn't show?" Scott asked bemused, clearly thinking. It looked painful.

"Nope, or else we wouldn't be here right now."

"But I told Peter to tell Derek –" everyone in our company groaned in exasperation at Scott and the tall African America teen, who I guessed was Boyd, actually face-palmed.

"What? What did Scott do wrong?"

"He told Peter Hale, of all people, to a relay a reliable message to his uncle. Honestly McCall, I wonder how that tiny brain of yours can function sometimes! It's embarrassing!" The rather attractive teen with a swagger quipped snidely, throwing Scott a withering glare.

"So I'm guessing we just showed up for nothing?" I concluded, frustrated and annoyed beyond belief. "Unbelievable! I haven't even met the damn Hales and I'm already fed up with the two of them!"

"You don't know the half of it," the waif like girl with black hair sympathetically. I may not be a detective but it was clear from the protective grip she had on Scott's arm that she was Allison, the hunter. _So not what I had expected. _

"I'm sorry," Scott muttered, actually looking meek.

I let out what had to be the millionth sigh today and sent him a wan little smile. "It's okay kid, you didn't know they were going to screw you around. Well, you didn't know Peter was going to screw you around. Look, since Nick and I are both here, how about we all get acquainted?"

"Finally, someone around here who's speaking some sense! And she's a woman, how refreshing!" the modelesque figure with strawberry blond hair and a pout exclaimed bright, promptly shoving Stiles out of the way to shake my hand. "Lydia Martin, pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Pleasure all my, hun." I replied warmly with a wink. "I have a feeling that we're going to get along just fine."

"And I'm Jackson, but you can call me anything you want gorgeous," The swagger teen commented smugly before receiving identical slaps upside the head from Lydia, Allison and the other girl with long blond curly hair who had to be Erica. I would have to watch this one.

"I apologise for his existence, I'm Isaac by the way." The tall boy with curly said with a small smile but exuded quiet confidence. I liked him on sight.

"And I'm Boyd," The big guy nodded from his original spot on the stairs, a little more cautious than the others.

"Well, since we've got this whole thing going, may as well get comfortable. Besides, I still need to have a word with your Alpha, regardless if he wants us here or not."

"You mean we may actually get to witness you taking Derek down a peg live? Oh man, this is going to be priceless," Erica smiled deviously. "I'm thinking you need to stick around for a while."

"I'm starting to think so too."

"Hey Nick," Stiles called where the boys seemed to have assembled with a beat up X-Box. "You play?"

"Do I play? Bitch please! Move over boys, the queen is in the house and he's gonna show you how it's done!"

"Don't make them cry now Nick," I called over my shoulder as I was briskly led to a train car by the girls.

"No mercy!" was the only reply I received as the cyber carnage began. _Seriously, what in the hell have I just gotten myself into?! _

While the boys (and I mean boys) bonded over their games, the girls and I sat and talked, filling me in on all the missing puzzle pieces that Nick had left out or just not known. What every single one of them has gone through in just the last year damn near broke my heart. Allison, losing her mother who would have rather died than change into a wolf; Lydia, being bitten by Peter and only be controlled by him to help him 'resurrect'; Erica, her awful affliction that pushed her to accept Derek's bite for the sake of a better life. The boys weren't much better. Stiles and Scott had both had their parents threatened by wolves and hunters since Scott's turning, Isaac only accepted the bite to escape the brutal abuse inflicted upon him by his own father, Boyd had just wanted to belong to a group so he didn't feel so alone in the world anymore; I even felt sorry for Jackson who had lost all control, becoming the legendary, murderous Kanima, controlled by others who had nothing but evil intentions for him and those he hurt. There was something about all these teenagers, so strong and capable but still just kids, that made me want to go all mama-Alpha and protect them from all the evil that the world had to offer and believe me, I had sampled some of it first-hand. I had suffered young, Nick had suffered young; these kids didn't deserve it but, by either association or as a result of their bite, they were forced to grow up fast. It was meeting young wolves and humans like these that made the wolf within me yearn to expand my own pack.

_See? You'd be good with pups of your own! The maternal instinct is there; just let it flow through you. _

_Shut up bitch! I wasn't asking you! _

It had been at least three hours since Nick and I had arrived at the station to meet with Derek, only to be informed that he had been misinformed by his devious uncle. The guys were carrying on rambunctiously, Nicholas schooling Isaac, Boyd, Jackson and Scott quickly before finding a formidable foe in Stiles. The girls and I had bonded quickly and I think they appreciated the older female perspective on wolf life and all things pack; clearly only having an older male Alpha with emotional blockage issues wasn't ideal for a small group of teenage girls, one of whom was a wolf, another a hunter and the third a supernatural and human anomaly.

I was about to suggest that we all go out in search of some food or, better yet, invite them to my house for some of my cooking while I was still in the mood, when there was the loud scrunch of gravel under men's feet. Two men. Both wolves…_Aw, hell. _Everyone in the station was frozen in shock, unsure of what to do.

"Derek's back," Erica murmured, sending me a fearful look. I didn't blame her. Not only did Derek not know that Nicholas and I had arrived but that we had spent almost an entire afternoon with his betas and pack without his permission? A no-no in wolf circles.

_You done goofed this time girl. _

"Quick, we should hide them!" Stiles whispered frantically, arms flying everywhere and clocking Jackson in the back of his head. "Hide under a blanket or something."

"Yeah, um, Stiles? I think it's a little late for that." I replied tersely, standing up from my spot in the train car and walking out into the middle of the station, Nick close behind me, watching the door and the stairs with trepidation.

"Would anyone care to explain why there's a strange car parked out in front with the stench of wolves all over it?" I heard Derek's terse voice echo through the station. The betas visibly shrank in their respective seats, the urge to submit to an Alpha too great. Even Nick trembled slightly behind me before shaking it off. I stood my ground and tried not to let my heart beat right out of my chest.

"Oh, that's right! I completely forget to mention that Scott told me to tell you that one Ms Keats and her brother had agreed to meet with you today to discuss the proposal." Came the smooth, almost creepy voice of (I assumed) Peter. He promptly appeared, racing down the stairs before his nephew, an older man of perhaps forty-something but still youthful and attractive. His eyes were almost pale blue, warm but dark in their depths. _Creeper. _

"You WHAT?" I heard Derek roar angrily from somewhere outside.

"Oops, my bad," Peter said calmly flippant about the whole situation. "Well? Don't be so rude Derek, come and greet our guests."

There was the quick pace of mad feet stomping their way to the door and down the stairs. Rather than boldly watch his descent, I nervously flicked my gazed back to my brother, who was looking a little less than stoic himself but still behind me, ready to defend if necessary. I heard an angry exhale of air and felt his intimidating presence closer than before, only a few feet away. Slowly, cowardly, I turned my head back to stare down Derek in at least some semblance of authority when it hit me like a speeding freight train.

_That smell; oh my God, that scent! Those eyes, that voice! I knew it! Yes, oh yes! _

_No, oh fuck no! Please God, why now, why him? Please don't do this to me? I can't handle this! _

_Why are you so sad, Scarlett? This could mean great things for us! Embrace it, own it, it's our destiny. _

_Destiny is bullshit and so are you! _

Standing before me was a man, no older than my own twenty six years, tall and imposing, nothing but masculinity and muscle. Black hair spiked messily that framed a sharp face with the dark growth of five o'clock shadow, lips drawn in a tight, angry line and grey green eyes flashing daggers and Alpha red and _fuck. _His head was cocked slightly at an angle, glaring down at me with a mixture of anger, disbelief and curiosity, arms crossed over his pectorals.

_Oh, my, Lord! _

We stared each other down for what seemed an eternity but in reality only seconds had passed. Nick and the other betas stared at us in breathless silence, having no idea about the infantismal shift that had taken place between their Alpha and myself. Peter, however, looked on with a smug smile, as if he had expected this to happen. Deciding to end the torture of Derek's gaze I cleared my throat as steadily as I could and stepped forward, suppressing the little gasp that threatened to escape my lips.

"Mr. Hale, I believe we have some business to discuss." I said softly, desperately wanting to look away from his eyes but afraid of the consequences if I dared.

Derek said nothing. He only nodded curtly before turning on his tail and walking up the stairs again, throwing a grunted "Follow me" as he walked away. And as a strong, independent, female Alpha who had never submitted to any man, not even another Alpha, I followed him out into the fading afternoon light like a meek puppy scurrying after her master.

_What have I done to myself now? _I pleaded with the she-wolf who I could see clearly in my mind; my own face starring back with fangs and blood red eyes.

_You know exactly what this is, Scarlett. You know the consequences; I dare you to bare them on your own. _

"So," Derek said, making me jump a foot in the air, drawn out of my internal monologue. "What do we do about all of this?"

I looked away. He took a step forward. "I have no idea what 'this' you're referring to?"

"You know exactly what all 'this' is, Ms Keats. Don't take me for a fool." He growled lowly, bitterly.

_Yeah, I know exactly what you're talking about…I just wish that I didn't…._

_XoxoxoxoX _

**Whoa! So, okay, a lot to take in this chapter but I just couldn't stop myself once I got started, ARGH! You all probably know where this is headed but I promise you, my loyal minions, that I will try not to rush this so I can draw the story out a lot longer. Any and all suggestions welcome so please hit that little old review button and tell me what you think. **

**Thanks as always for your wonderful support. Love, Lithium xxoo **


	4. Chapter 4

**Wellity, wellity, wellity! Seems some fantastic little writer has already produced a fourth chapter **** Now I know you may all think you know which direction I was taking the end of the last chapter in but I've decided to twist this a little bit. **

**On with the story my lovers! **

_XoxoxoxoX _

"You know exactly what 'this' is, Ms Keats. Don't take me for a fool." He growled lowly, bitterly.

Derek had backed me up against the door of his black Camaro, invading my personal space so I had to avert my eyes. The intense sensation I had when I tried to keep his gaze was too much and I felt cowardly standing before another Alpha, unable to even keep my head up.

_It's because you're submitting to him…_

"I believe you'll have to elaborate, Mr. Hale." I murmured quietly. "I really don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm talking about that phone call last week!" He growled again. I looked back up at him in complete surprise. _So it wasn't…oh thank God! Stupid she-wolf, can't tell the fucking difference. _"You're lucky I'm more than a little lenient on you and your brother for that stunt."

My breathing had returned to normal and I relaxed against the door of his car, crossing my arms over my chest with a smirk. My previous concerns abated, I felt myself take charge of the wolf in me and stood a little taller. I did not and would not submit to Derek Hale; not now, not ever…not yet.

"I see no problem with that. After all, I simply told you that if you had sufficient evidence to deem my brother and I no threat to you and your pack then contact us and we will help you. What more is there to talk about?"

"You dared to show me disrespect! In my town, in front of my pack and you think you can show up here, unannounced, and have the audacity to come into my pack, like you belong!" he snapped, stepping closer again.

I sighed and, with no thought to my self-preservation, I pushed him away from me so I wasn't trapped between his body and the cold door of the car. I paced a little, acting completely uninterested in his thunderous expression…_although if he cared to take a step back and listen to my heart, he'd probably know differently. _"Look, if you want anyone to blame for me showing up here out of the blue, then blame your uncle. He knew we were coming and didn't tell you. I was simply following instructions that you sent via Scott. Oh, and stop with the growling and flashing eyes, would you? You're not intimidating anyone, least of all me."

Derek simply growled angrily in response, eyes narrowing. "You think just because you're an Alpha that you can get away with things like this? Are you that completely fucking stupid?"

_Alright, now you done crossed the line. _"Listen here, Hale! I've been an Alpha a hell of a lot longer than you and believe me; I know exactly what I'm doing here! I'm standing up to some jerk off who thinks because his eyes can change a pretty red and he flashes some fang I'm gonna bear my neck in submission! Well fuck you, okay? We came here as a favour to a friend and believe me, I would love nothing more than to keep my brother and I out of this stupid feud you have with the Alphas! I'm here, in an act as close to submission as you will ever get from me, offering my assistance to you and yours, to keep you safe, and you dare disrespect _me? _Seriously Hale, fuck you!"

Derek looked more than a little taken aback at my outburst and frankly, so was I. I go angry, sure, with Nick, with other wolves but not like this. You kept your cool around other Alphas otherwise you looked weak, irrational, especially if you were a young female Alpha. Yet, here I was screaming down another Alpha in the darkening light with a whole warehouse of betas listening in on our conversation. _Not how I envisioned this meeting going…at least no one is covered in blood yet. YET. _

After a few more moments of silence I couldn't take it anymore. This guy was just staring at me like I was some kind of anomaly that he couldn't figure out and that just pissed him off. "So?" I demanded impatiently.

"So what?" he asked with an irritated shrug. His anger seemed to have decreased a little but that scowl was still firmly in place.

"Sooo, are you going to accept my offer or are you going to leave us the hell alone? If you don't want our assistance, then fine, you leave us alone and we leave you alone. But if you want it then tell me and maybe we can work something out."

"And what makes you think that I want your help, that I need it?" Derek asked with a raised brow.

I was stumped as to how to answer when the sounds of steady Beta hear beats and then it hit me. "You need me," I began steadily, looking him in the eye firmly. "You need me because you have a group of kids down there who are terrified right now."

"Don't assume you know anything about my pack after just a few hours –" Derek interrupted before I held up a terse hand to silence him.

"No, you don't get to talk. It's my turn now. You've been making grand gestures by stalking my home for almost a month and now I get my say. Alright, you have a pack of wolves, to be sure, but they are teenagers, they are kids and they are scared! Okay? They are scared. They didn't have to say it in words but the prospect of taking on a whole pack of wolves that have infinitely more experience than they do is terrifying for them. They need to be trained, by someone with experience in dealing with these sorts of packs."

"And you have that experience, do you?" Derek snapped disbelievingly.

I glared coldly at him. _You have no idea how much I wish I didn't have this experience, you have no idea. _"Yes, I do. My brother and I both. I am not calling into question your capability as an Alpha to train them; you helped them defeat an Argent and saved Jackson from being doomed to life as a Kanima. You are a good Alpha Derek; despite sending children to do your dirty work, you're good. But you don't know these packs like I do and trust me, you do not want to be caught unprepared or see any members of your pack die. From what I understand there has been enough chaos in this town over the last year. I just want to help you; I want to help them."

All was quiet again between us. I kept eye contact with him, watching for his reactions. His expression was blank, heart rate even. But his eyes still held that same mix of intense curiosity as they had when he had first laid eyes on me, an eerie familiarity. Although I suppose that after a month of sitting outside my house, he knew me well enough. He just had a face to put to the name now. Another agonising moment ticked by before my own impatience got the best of me once again.

"So?" I demanded, much more softly this time. I took a few tentative steps towards him with my hand outstretched. "Do we have a deal, Mr Hale?"

His eyes, finally green grey again, darted from my eyes to my hand for a brief second before his own hand reached out to grasp mine in an incredibly firm shake, holding onto it as he stared directly at me. "Yes, we have a deal Ms Keats." And he kept right on holding it.

_Okay, those little electric jolts should not be there. I think it's time to let go now. _

Hesitantly, although I'm not sure why, I withdrew my hand from his and took a few calm steps back. Derek stayed in the same position by his car. Again I felt nervous in his presence and I looked for a way out from under his gaze. As seemed to be a recurring trend, my salvation came in the form of Stiles.

"Hey guys? Since this whole confusion thing has been cleared up, can we go eat? We're all starving; no pun intended."

"Stilinski, it's bad enough that we're pack, don't make it worse on us, okay?"

I let out a little chuckle at their banter while I observed Derek shaking his head exasperatedly out of the corner of my eye. "Sounds like a good a plan as any. Would it be okay if I accompanied you all for some dinner?"

Derek shot me a disbelieving look. "Oh, so now you're going to ask permission?"

"I was raised to be polite Mr Hale, but only when the other party is polite to me. Keep that in mind and I we might be able to get along for the sake of pack."

"My pack." He emphasised with a low rumble.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course. Now come on, I'm not keeping a warehouse full of starving wolves waiting, not for all the Alphas in the world." I sent a small, nervous smile his way before walking back to the descending stairs with the heat that comes with eyes that follow your back as you walk away.

_XoxoxoxoX _

"Well, that wasn't nearly as painful as I thought it would be." Nick declared cheerily as he plopped himself down on the couch.

I snorted. "In what sense? The we-didn't-get-ripped-to-shreds sense or the fact that everyone could hear me losing my marbles at Derek tonight?"

"It was pretty funny listening to you two being so formal," Nick chuckled but backtracked on seeing my frown. "But honestly I think you handled yourself very well. Yes, you got a little confrontational but the guy is a possible candidate for Most Socially Awkward Werewolf ever! Seriously, didn't even get a hello or anything; how rude!"

"He also may have been a bit standoffish with you because I could practically smell the lust coming off of you when you were watching his back?"

"What?" Nick smirked innocently. "He's a good looking guy, I also happen to be an attractive looking guy…you never know, right?"

My smile tightened inexplicably and my heart squeezed just a little. "Yeah," I murmured quietly. "You never know."

_Is that jealously I sense in your heart, dear Scarlett? My, my, and against your own brother making a simple joke? I did tell you it was destiny, didn't I? _

_Yes, but you're still a horny bitch who I can't trust. _

"Hey, Scarlett? You okay over there? What planet did you just fly off to?" I heard Nick, as though he was at a distance.

I shook my head, completely spaced out. "Um, nowhere interesting? Hey, you want some cake or something? There's a tonne left over."

"Sure." He shot me suspicious look but didn't press further. We sat down at the kitchen counter and demolished two and a half cakes with many cups of coffee and tea before deciding to call it a night. It felt ridiculous to being going to be so early because normally our Saturday nights were filled with movies and food but today had been different, good or bad I couldn't really say, and as a result we were both whipped. The time was only 10 pm.

I ran myself under a quick steaming shower to rinse the day away. Not that I minded the smell of the young betas or the humans, even Peter the Creeper had a pleasant enough scent. But it was Derek's that was bothering me. Of course I recognised his scent the moment he was close enough for me to be overpowered by it…_burnt wood, old leather, pine and that damn cologne. _I scrubbed my skin as hard as I could unlike I was bright pink all over and I smelt like my body wash again. According to Nick it was a mix of vanilla, jasmine and honey.

As I was pulling a shirt over my naked torso I felt those stupid eyes on my back and that damn scent on the breeze. I felt a low rumble echo in my chest as I spun around, chest now covered. _Of all the nerve! _

"You know," I ground out, sticking my head out the window slightly. "It's rude to spy on a woman, especially when she's in the middle of changing. We may have to discuss boundaries, Mr Hale."

Red eyes gleamed briefly in the dark, but soon he stood close enough to the edge of the woods for me to see him clearly. I wondered briefly if he ever changed out of that leather jacket, so worn and patched.

"It's a favourite of mine." Came a faint reply, trace of a smirk in his tone. I startled back a little; only realising too late I had said that last part out loud. _Not blushing, so not blushing! _

"Whatever," I muttered bitterly. "What is it you want anyway? A text or a phone call is a much more conventional method of communication. Hell, even a howl would be."

"Wednesday night we're going to being training. You, Ms Keats and your brother; meet us at the house in the woods, about twenty minutes run from here. I'll send Isaac or Erica to come and get you." He said in the same tone as before, not even acknowledging that I had spoken. _Rude, seriously rude. _

"Fine, we'll be there. But seriously, next time you want to contact me you should -… and you've already taken off." I sighed exasperatedly, banging my head against the window pane as the sound of his foot falls disappeared softly. "Wait a second!" I called after him. He stopped walking. "Why did you come all the way to the house anyway? You and the kids usually stand off a lot further than that."

The air was silent for a few beats of a heart before his quiet reply floated back. "There's an Alpha pack out there Ms Keats, and if you're to be any help to us, I need to keep you alive." And then his feet took off in a sprint into the night until I could no longer hear them. I stood with my forehead still against the window, utterly perplexed.

_Did Derek Hale do the wolf equivalent of walk us home? What the hell?! _

_XoxoxoxoX _

_The sun was so warm on my skin; even indoors it felt as though I was outside. It was perfect, perched next to a window in the sun with a pleasant breeze blowing through the trees near the house. I had one leg dangling out on the sill, starring absently off into the distance. It was still hard to believe at times that I had gotten so lucky, it should truthfully be illegal. But it wasn't. This was real. _

_This was a fairy tale. _

"_What are you doing?" A voice small voice asked quizzically from the doorway. I smiled softly and turned my head to him. He always thought he could surprise me but his little heart was too loud to my ears, his footsteps still clumsy and awkward. _

"_Just watching the horizon, my love. You want to sit with me?" I asked him, extending my hand as his tiny one embraced mine. I pulled him up to sit on my lap as he giggled with delight, leaning his little back against my chest. I was never exactly tall, but with his precious body tucked into mine I felt so big, so invincible. _

"_What are you watching for?" he asked as I pressed kisses into his slightly curled hair. "You always sit at this window." _

"_Just watching," I replied. "This will be a good chance for you to practice actually." _

"_Really?" he glances up at me, green grey eyes wide with wonder. "How?" _

"_All of your senses, from your little ears," I tickled my fingers lightly across the delicate shell, earning me a giggle. "To your gorgeous eyes and to the adorable nose of yours….they are stronger than other people's and that is truly a gift. But you need to practice, so one day you can see, hear, and smell everything that you need to, to become big and strong." _

"_Like you?" another excited glance over his shoulder, excitement palpable. _

_I smiled down at him, another kiss pressed to his forehead. "Yes, just like me. Now close your eyes and take a deep breath for me." _

_His little lungs filled quickly and deeply and his eyelashes fluttered against his cheeks. "Okay." He murmured back to me. _

"_Now," I whispered, leaning down so my head rested right next to his. "Can you tell me what you smell out there? Describe everything you can. And listen for any familiar sounds, and tell me what they remind you of." _

_I felt his little pulse racing as his deep breaths continued. I also opened up my senses to encompass a broader area surrounding the house. Soon enough, about fifteen miles away and getting closer, I found that familiar scent I was waiting for. Two, actually. Their footfalls beating rapidly against the ground. His eyes opened in surprise and delight and he turned around to me in triumph. _

"_I can smell them! It smells like the trees and his jacket! And the other one is cinnamon and wine! They're coming back?" _

"_Very good, my love! Watch the tree line." I murmured happily, wrapping both arms around him a little tighter. Both our hearts were pounding in time, watching and waiting with growing impatience. _

_Not ten minutes later, two figures appeared in the trees, slowing their pace down as they reached the house. Squirming in delight he leapt off my lap and raced towards the stairs. _

"_You're home! You're home!" _

_I heard his deep chuckle from near the porch and went to join them outside. I moved swiftly down the stairs and out the front door, left wide open as he had run to meet him. And there I found them. I was up in his arms, swinging around and around and tossing his little head back in the sun laughing in a playfully terrified way. He looked up at him like he was the only thing in this world that mattered and it caused the grin on my face to widen at the sight. Two carbon copies of the other, so perfect and real. _

"_Guess what?" he said giddily as he was set gently on the ground, clutching at his jeans. "I scented you guys before you even got here! I heard you too!" _

"_Really now?" he said running his hand through the little curls on head. "I'd better watch my back or you're going to be able to surprise me one day." _

_He growled playfully up at his father before turning to his uncle with mischief in his eyes. "Bet I could sneak an attack on you, Uncle Nick!" _

_Nicholas crouched low on the ground next to his nephew. "You think you can little man? I'm pretty fast!" _

_Little Daniel crouched low in response and sprang forward, knocking his uncle to the ground as they playfully wrestled with one another, snapping and growling in the clearing. His father finally turned his face on me and I felt like I could breathe again. It was so stupid, after all this time to feel like this, a love sick puppy, but every time his eyes fell on me, the world just seemed a safer and better place. He reached me where I stood, leaning against one of the pillars and stood behind me, arms wrapping protectively around my waist and stubbled chin on my shoulder. I sighed happily and leant back against him. _

"_He's learning quickly," he said softly, watching Daniel spar with Nicholas. There was a definite note of pride in his voice. _

"_Well, he is learning from the best." I replied, gasping as he nipped behind my ear. "Okay! So I guess he gets it from his father then!" _

"_Damn right he does!" A soothing kiss was placed on the tender skin. "I guess you'll just have to wait until the next one to get a look in genetically." _

"_Oh, the next one huh?" I asked playfully. "And what makes you think that I'll let you give me a 'next one'?" _

"_Because I know you too well; you'd love to have a little girl that looks just like you, fights like you…" _

"_Mm, good answer." I tilted my head to chastely press my lips against his, breathing him in deep. Perfection. "So how long do I have to wait for this next one?" _

"_I don't know. A year or two." A kiss planted behind my ear. "Maybe a few months." Another, more opened mouth kiss placed against my throat. "A few hours, maybe?" _

_I giggled and bared more of my neck for his access. "I might not even have to wait that long, you know." I whispered in his ear and I felt him freeze. It was now or never. I had known for a week now, just to be sure but now I wanted him to know as well. _

_I was spun around in his arms as he gazed down at me, trying not to show any hopefulness or excitement at my suggestion. Ever the stoic Alpha. "You mean…?" _

_I nodded happily, grasping one of his hands and placing it against my still flat stomach. "Congratulations daddy." _

_With a beautiful smile he lifted me up into his arms and spun me around, like he had Daniel before quickly placing me down to earth again, soft kisses raining down on my face, scratchy with five o'clock shadow. _

"_Daddy, why spinning mommy around?" Daniel's voice called behind us. _

_He smiled over at his son. "No reason, kid. Your mom just makes me happy, because I love her." _

_I nuzzled my nose against his before whispering against his lips. "And I love you too, Derek." _

_XoxoxoxoX_

I didn't sit bolt upright. I didn't scream. I barely had the breath for that; I could have if I wanted to. I clutched at my pillow and cried silently into it, hoping not to alert Nick to my distress. There was no need to tell him about my dream, no need to relive it again. I still heard my imaginary son's giggle ringing in my ears, the warmth of his tiny body against mine.

"Why?" I whispered hoarsely to an empty room. "Why are you doing this to me? It was nothing! You know it was nothing. Please, I can't bear to dream those dreams anymore."

There in my mind's eye, my own wolfish face appeared, smiling bittersweet.

_You know exactly why, but you're in denial. And do you know what denial does to people like us? _

"Of course I know!"

_Then if you know and you continue to live in denial, the dreams will continue. Do not blame me, they are not my doing. If you want to blame anyone, it's your subconscious creating scenarios of what – _

"- will never be!" I muttered angrily and firm to the darkness. "You know my reasons. What we saw, it could never be. Not with Derek, not with anyone."

_If you say so, dear. The Alpha's decision is final after all._

Wiping my tears hastily on my sheets and praying Nick wouldn't smell their lingering salt in the morning, I fell back into an unease and fitful sleep once more.

_XoxoxoxoX _

"Are you okay, Scarlett? You seem a little distracted today." Deaton casually asked as he peeled off some gloves.

I glanced up at him, bemused. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, for one thing. You've been stroking that cat for the past ten minutes while starring off into space."

I looked down and indeed found the cat I had been holding was lying contentedly in my arms asleep, purring loudly. She had been awake when I took her out of her cage. I had been day dreaming, thinking back to the dream on Saturday night following my first encounter with Derek. I had barely slept since then, fearful of what I would see again. "Oh, heh, guess I didn't notice." I mumbled and placed the cat back in her respective cage.

Deaton stared at me curiously, expression neutral. "Something's on your mind, I can tell. Would you like to talk about it?"

"No," I mumbled. He raised an eyebrow sceptically. "Okay, yeah, I need to ask you a wolf question."

"I'll try and answer as much as I can," Deaton reassured me, leaning back against the wall.

I took a deep steadying breath. "Alright, so, for the last three months, I've been having these…these dreams."

"Dreams or nightmares?"

"Honestly, I'm finding it hard to distinguish the two anymore." I sighed wearily. "At first, it was brief flashes of, um, _sexual _encounters with another Alpha. I think he was my mate, or he's meant to be. He's always saying 'mine' or something about claiming, I dunno. When they first started it didn't bother me at all. They were just dreams, nothing more than that. But now, especially since we moved to Beacon Hills, they've been getting more….um, more –"

"Graphic?" Deaton filled in helpfully.

"Yes!" I exclaimed, relieved. "And it's like they're flashes of the future, or something ridiculous because each new one that I have seems to have skipped ahead in time! I mean, just the other night I dreamt –" My throat tightened with emotion but I swallowed it down and pushed on. "I dreamt that I had a son, and I had just told my mate I was pregnant with another pup. What does it all mean, Deaton? Is it just something psychological or do these dreams have a deeper significance than that?"

Deaton stood stock still for a few moments, scrutinising me quietly before speaking. "Scarlett, you are aware of the mating customs of wolves, are you not?"

I looked down sheepishly. "Honestly? No. I was too young to have the talk with my parents and Nick has always been a little too embarrassed to go into detail. I've garnered the basics but not a whole lot more than that."

"Well, by the sounds of things, the she-wolf part of you has sensed her mate close by, even months in advance. It's quiet a common phenomenon as far as I know but rare as wolves do not always find their mate in this world. It's like your mind's way of giving you clues and hints as to who your mate will be so when you inevitably find them, you will know and declare yourself to them, them to you, on sight. I suppose it's the wolf equivalent of love at first sight; usually without the love at first."

I looked at him in shock, wishing now that I had kept my big mouth shut. Of course, it could just be a simple trick of the mind or the she-wolf wanting to get some action for her sex-starved human counterpart. No, of course it had to be a wolfish, psychic premonition about my future one and only, whom I would bear pups to and be with forever. No, no, no! I couldn't let that happen! It was unfair to another wolf or human to share the hardships I would have to face in this world without the added bonus of children. I always swore, not long after Deaton had brought me to Nick's family that I would never allow myself to be mated or the bring pups into this evil, vile world. Now, even my mind was acknowledging that that pledge would soon have to go unfulfilled.

"And," I asked shakily. "What if the wolf, say the one who is having the dreams, denies his or her mate's existence? Can the wolf part acknowledge it but the human counterpart deny it at the same time?"

"Oh that happens more often than not, although it's been awhile since I've met a mating pair around these parts. The wolf will instantly declare its claim on the mate by smell and sight alone. If you let go to your baser, primal urges then all is said and done quickly. But there is always a human element to the equation, and humans do not fall in love at first sight; not in reality anyway. At first they are so overwhelmed by the declaration of mateship by their wolves that they deny it, think it's nothing more than lust or a crush. A temporary, fleeting feeling. But, deny your mate too long, and you will very quickly destroy yourself. Wolves are stronger in packs and mates are strong when in the presence or at least close proximity to their significant other. If your wolf has declared the other its mate and the human part refuses…well, it leads to weakness, depression, and slower healing rates and in some extreme cases, death."

_Oh good, I feel so much better now. _

"Scarlett, just one more thing."

"What?"

"Have you seen you're mate's face in your dreams? Have you said their name or met then in reality yet?"

I stared at Deaton and said in a wavering voice. "No, I haven't see a face, said a name and I doubt that I've met them here in the Beacon Hills pack."

Deaton nodded slowly, but something in his steady eyes said that he didn't believe a world of what I had just said.

_How can you blame him? Neither do you…_

_XoxoxoxoX _

**Dun-Dun-DUUUUUUH! Something's in the air, and I wonder what it could be? Hmm… once again, thank you to all those following the story.**

**To those of you who have posted guest comments that (for some bizarre reason) are not showing up in the comments section, FEAR NOT, I get notified by email and can read them there. You all literally make my day to see such kind words of praise, thank you; you are all the reason I want to keep writing. **

**Hope to have the next chapter up soon for you; review responsibly. Lots of love, Lithium xxoo **


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm just pumping these bad boys out! Yay, Chapter Five! Once again, the constant notifications have been overwhelming and you are all so wonderful for supporting this story. Also, I apologise for an editing errors in the last chapter; that's what you get when you're trying to finish it at 1 am after all. **

**On with the story! **

_XoxoxoxoX _

"Again!" Derek called out from the middle of the clearing as Jackson and Boyd sped toward each other, growling and snapping.

Wednesday had arrived and as promised, Isaac and Erica came to the house to escort Nick and I mid-afternoon, only half an hour since they had all left school for the day. Erica and I had talked quietly amongst ourselves as we jogged towards the house while Nick and Isaac led out front. The house itself looked the same as the station; something out of a horror story, all charred and burnt but this had a more disturbing quality; the cold stench of death ingrained in the wood. By the time we had arrived, everyone else was already present, including Lydia, Stiles and Allison. Derek was in a deep discussion with Peter but paused to throw a look in my direction, a mix of annoyance and something I couldn't quite put my finger on. It lasted a second before he turned his back on me and continued talking with his uncle. The others were much warmer in their welcome, Stiles running up for a hug as had become the standard while the others simply called out a greeting and made small talk, waiting for their Alpha. When I had embraced Stiles I could have sworn I heard a growl emit low and deep from someone's chest, the possessive type, but I couldn't pick where, from whom or why. I had let it go, brushing it off as nothing.

The betas had been sparring for almost two hours now in various pairs but Derek was running them through the same moves over and over. To say it had gotten more than a little dull was an understatement. Allison, who had bought her bow and arrows, had taken to showing Lydia the rudimentary basics of shooting while Stiles was currently engrossed in an X-Men comic. Even Peter had taken to reading an ancient looking book, only looking up occasionally to roll his eyes at his nephew. As for Nick and I, our presence had barely been acknowledged. Derek had not summoned either of us up to demonstrate any moves or give the pack any advice on how to successfully defend themselves and possibly defeat the Alpha pack. Nick was dozing peacefully against the pillars on the porch while I sat with growing impatience and frustration. After what seemed the millionth time that Jackson was sent flying by one of Boyd's hits, Isaac was pinned to the ground by Scott and Erica thrown against a tree by Derek did it all become a little too ridiculous, a culmination of Derek ignoring my existence entirely and silently and sullenly refusing my help.

"Okay seriously? If this is how you intend to beat the Alphas, you're all screwed." I snapped, standing up and walking down the stairs to the clearing.

The silence was almost deafening and as every eye turned on me I started to debate whether I should have opened my mouth at all. Nick was startled out of his slumber and had fallen to the ground in a gap in the rails, Allison stood open mouth as Lydia dropped another arrow, Peter looked up with some genuine interest for the first time in hours and Stiles buried his head deeper in his comic. The other betas stared at me with a mixture of relief, gratitude and terror. Derek; well, Derek –

"Excuse me?" he growled angrily. "As I recall, I'm the Alpha of this pack so how I train them isn't up for argument; especially from you!"

"Then why the fuck am I here?" I exclaimed. "You agreed to let me help your pack to defeat the Alphas and protect yourselves but so far you've ignored me completely and had your betas attack each other with the same damn moves! You're not teaching them anything useful!"

During the course of our heated exchange we had stepped up into each other's person space, almost chest to chest and growling in each other's face. "Is that right?"

"Yeah, that's exactly right! Either let me show them something of value or I'm leaving!"

"Do me a favour and leave!" Derek snarled. His canines were down, eyes red. I felt my own react in kind. With a roar I curled my clawed hand into a fist and swung my arm back, letting it fly with force.

_CRUNCH! _

The tree that Derek hit fifteen feet away splintered and fell back under the force of the Alpha's body weight and my own hit. I stood with chest heaving, red eyes daring Derek to stand up. Scott, Boyd, Erica, Isaac and Jackson had retreated to the relative safety of the porch. I was more she-wolf than Scarlett in that moment as I glanced over my shoulder and with a cocky smile spoke to them.

"Watch and learn kids, this is how real Alphas fight." I had barely finished my sentence when two arms knocked me clean around my middle, sending my flying to the ground. I felt two ribs break on impact, causing me to howl in pain. I felt the fibres and bones quickly knitting back together, just in time to see Derek standing above me with claws ready to descend, his face completely transformed. I twisted away with seconds to spare, kicking both legs up and hitting Derek square in the chest, sending him flying once more. Upright again I crouched in challenge, growling at Derek's writhing form. He too was soon up on his haunches and ready for more punishment which I was more than happy to give him.

We ran headlong towards each other but before his arms could come around me to trap me there I wrapped an arm around his neck and leapt up onto his back, digging my claws in for stability. He roared and spun to try and throw me off but my hold on him was too great. With a lurched I threw my entire weight down on his back and forced him face first into the ground. I heard the distinct crack of his nose breaking, back flipping off his body and running back a few feet. It had been far too long since I had fought with anyone who was a challenge for me but Derek was making me work for a win and the she-wolf was roaring her approval at this turn of events.

Derek was up on his feet again and charging at me viciously. He wanted to make me work for it, well; I was going to make him work too. Unconsciously, Derek probably appreciated a fight with someone who could keep up, that didn't make it easy for him after teaching and training the betas for God knows how long. Instead of running toward him as he charged down I sent him a smirk before turning and running for the trees.

"What's she doing? Derek's faster than she is, she'll never make it!" I heard Scott breathe out stunned.

"Just watch her, Scott; she's in her element right now." Nick's voice floated back, proud and excited. That only stoked the fire in my soul to really show Derek what I was capable of and show him that he was never to take my assistance for granted ever again. Just as I was about to hit the tree it threw my leg up and with the speed I had gathered, ran partially up the trunk before flipping over mid-air, landing behind Derek before he had a chance to turn again. I laid five punches and kicks to the key pressure points on his torso in quick succession before grasping him by the throat, lifting him slightly off his feet and pushing him up against the tree while he struggled snarling and snapping. But it was over. I had won. I grinned up at him, all fang and vicious triumph as if telling him, showing him physically that he needed me, he needed my help or else he would be in this exact situation when the Alphas eventually come. And they wouldn't let him live. I watched as Derek's face slowly transformed back to its human state, a bitter angry scowl fixed down at me as my own face returned to normal, claws and fangs retracting soon after. I turned to find everyone closer than I had last seen them, ten feet away and so quiet you could hear a pin drop. I turned back to Derek and slowly lowered his body to the ground, removing my hand more gently than I realised, our eyes locking briefly before I walked to the rest of the pack. Despite the she-wolf approving completely about knocking Derek flat, I tried to ignore the tightening in my chest…was a feeling guilty? Did I actually want to apologise? _No, no you don't. _

"See?" I panted with a ghost of a smile. "This is what I was talking about. It's all well and good to have the basic tactics down but what you saw were two Alphas, wolves from birth, fighting and sparring. But we what you saw was nothing. Derek and I were not fighting to maim or kill."

"Speak for yourself." He muttered behind me. I rolled my eyes.

"The point is, the wolves you will be facing will fight in a similar fashion. They are stronger than you, they have more experience than you and they will know exactly how to take out inexperienced betas. However, the one advantage we have in this is that this pack is unorganised. They are more focused on their primal hunting instincts than thinking strategically. We, however, will be thinking strategically and combining this with our training and pure instinct, we actually stand a chance in pushing them back or getting rid of them for good."

Everyone nodded, all still silent and unsure of how to respond. I turned back around to where Derek still stood, glaring and waves of anger and resentment rolling off him. It made me shiver. "You have anything to add to that Mr Hale?"

Derek's eyes were full of icy fire as he brushed straight past me, past the quiet pack and stomped moodily past the house, wrenching the door of his Camaro open. The engine roared to life and in a squealing of tires, he took off.

"Well," Peter smiled benignly. "That went better than expected. Now, who's hungry? I volunteer Scarlett's kitchen."

_XoxoxoxoX _

_Seven days. _Seven days later and Derek refused to be anywhere in my presence, even for a minute. While training continued on an almost daily basis and I kept in frequent contact with the rest of the pack, even having them over for dinner twice, Derek still refused to come near me or talk to me. Any messages, which were rare in the short time, they were relayed through Peter or Nick but never directly to me. Immaturely, whenever I showed up at the house for training, he took one long hard look in my direction and then walked off to his car which he promptly sped out of the area. I ignored the flashes of hurt that squeezed my heart when he left. Because he meant nothing and nothing existed from the very first moment other than animosity and anger.

"Am I the only one here who thinks he's acting like a big were-baby?" I growled out, punching my hand clean through a tree as Derek sped off for the eighth time that week.

Eric just smiled knowingly while gently pulling my out from the wood and brushing away splinters. "Don't worry about him. He's just all mopey because his masculine ego got battered against a few trees. He'll get over it eventually."

I gave her a disbelieving look. "I'm not so sure. He seems like the kind to hold a grudge."

"You have no idea." Allison said muttered, fingering the arrow she had in her hand.

"All men are such babies," Lydia sighed, leaning regally against the now mangled tree. "Any threat to their status as the hunters, the leaders and the rational thinkers, they lose their minds. That's why I used to pretend with Jackson for so long! Part of him hated the thought of his girlfriend being anything more than a pretty face."

"Fucking men," I shook my head wearily. "And we were the subjugated sex for how long?"

"Amen! Preach it sister!" Erica declared, giving me a quick high five.

"Would you all stop gossiping over there?" Jackson said with a sigh, as if dealing with women was just below him. "You can talk about shopping, or periods, or Ryan Gosling or whatever it is later; we have training to get back to."

"Uh, come again?" Lydia asked tone dangerously calm. She walked over to his boyfriend and although she was just a human and he was a big bad wolf, he seemed to have realised his mistake too late.

"Um, what I meant was, I mean…" he stammered quickly but Lydia was already interrupting him.

"No, no Jackson, you were quite clear on what you think about us. You think we're of no use? That we're too irrational to be part of the pack?"

"Well, you are blowing this slightly out of proportion." Boyd mumbled, forgetting the two other female wolves in the pack could hear him perfectly.

"What?!" Erica screeched.

"Well done, buddy, real smooth." Isaac gave him a sarcastic pat on the back. Wisely he, Stiles, and Peter had quickly moved away from the ensuing arguments.

"This is all crazy! Scott, tell the guys to pull their heads in so we can just get on with tonight's training?" Allison asked with a pointed look at her significant other.

"Well, Lydia did kind of start this, so why don't you tell her to back off?" Scott replied, clearly not realising what he had said. _Oh, Scott… _

"You know what? I've had enough of all of you boys right now! You're no better than Derek just because Scarlett handed his ass to him on a platter! When you grow up a little, you come and see us. Girls, let's go." Lydia preened with dignified anger while stalking off, Allison and Erica in tow. The boys stood and watched, open-mouthed and completely out of their element. I stood there in shock, wondering how the hell it had all escalated so quickly while internally berating Derek for getting this stupid battle of the sexes started to begin with. I wasn't willing to admit that my getting that particular fight started was at fault here just yet.

I looked over to where Peter was watching this with calculated amusement. "So, any idea on what the fuck just happened there?" I asked weakly.

He simply shrugged non-committedly. "Teenagers, what are you going to do?"

_XoxoxoxoX _

_Another seven days. _Training had been suspended since the battle of the sexes began. Two weeks since my fight with Derek. To say that things weren't going to plan was an understatement. Lydia, Allison and Erica refused to talk to Scott, Boyd and Jackson so Stiles, Isaac and I were forced to act as intermediaries between parties. It was one such occasion, a Saturday night as I was leaving Deaton's clinic and walking home. A belligerent Lydia was on the other line.

"Look, I'm just saying it's been a week and you all should suck it up and talk to the guys again. Besides, this is hardly an appropriate time to be fighting over petty boy vs. girl notions, especially when there's an Alpha pack waiting God knows where to attack us! We haven't trained in over a week!'

An annoyed huff reached my ears. "Well then why don't you follow your own advice?"

"What?"

"Well, you and Derek haven't spoken to each other in two weeks."

"Yes, but that's because he's being a little bitch about the fact he got his ass kicked by a girl."

"I know. I was there. But you're asking us to speak to the boys again when they started it."

"And there's a point to all of this?" I asked getting impatient.

"My point is that you were the one who started arguing with Derek in the first place! If you hadn't gone she-hulk on him and challenged his authority then none of this would have happened in the first place!"

"Hey, you agreed with me that he was acting like complete fool! Why should I suck it up and apologise to him?"

Lydia sighed wearily. "While I can't claim I've known Derek the longest out of the pack, I do know that he's had a somewhat tenuous grip on leadership, particularly with Scott and Jackson was none too good in taking orders in the beginning either. Now there's another pack, comprising of all Alphas, threatening his home and his pack. And while I completely understand your perspective, you came along out of the blue, another Alpha, and you challenged his authority by firstly embarrassing him with that phone call, showing up in his lair 'uninvited' and then wiping his face all over the woods!"

I stopped in my tracks and thought about it. Of course, on a subconscious level I understood this but being an Alpha and a stubborn woman who would argue the sky was green given the chance, I had been completely unwilling to admit that I may have been at fault in the shenanigans of the last few weeks. In all the petty bickering and fights we had lost sight of what was really at stake here; _our lives. _I groaned at the thought of my own stubborn stupidity over the last weeks and wanted to hit myself.

"I'll take it by that groan there that you're coming to the sudden epiphany that you and Derek are completely pig-headed and have been acting immaturely."

"And Jackson thought you were an airhead for how long?" I said with a weak chuckle.

A girlish giggle came back at me. "What can I say? I'd make a fabulous actress if I didn't have a Fields Medal to win one day. Think about what I said, Scarlett. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Okay, talk to you later." I sighed as I ended the call. A few moments later I was approaching my front door. I was exhausted and starving from a busy day of tending to the animals so I was looking forward to nothing more than a decent shower, lots of food and maybe falling asleep in front of the television while watching shitty sitcoms. I turned on the light in my living room, ready to move into the kitchen when I heard a voice behind me.

"So you lecture Lydia on not taking training seriously but can't detect someone in your own house? Smart."

I would deny it until the day I died but I let out a girlish scream and spun around, back pressed to the door. _How did I not recognise that scent? That voice?_ There in the single chair in the corner sat Derek, looking at me with an eyebrow raised. "Did you seriously just scream Ms Keats?"

"Yes I seriously just screamed! What the actual fuck? I mean, do you make it a regular habit of sitting in the dark like that?"

He shrugged nonchalantly and stood up but didn't move any more than that. He just continued to stare at me with a blank expression and intense eyes as my heart beat slowed and my breathing returned to normal, not helped by the fact that a tiny part, miniscule even, felt relieved to see him, smell him. _Fuck_. I glared half-heartedly at him, hoping he would say something, anything, to end the silence that seemed to descend over the two of us whenever we were alone. I pushed off the door and walked past him into the kitchen, slipping off my jacket.

"Is there something you wanted Mr Hale or did you just come here to scare the living day lights out of me?"

"Not my fault you weren't paying attention."

I growled under my breath. "Look, if you've just come here to snark then just leave. I'd rather not have a repeat of that day in the woods in my home." I turned my back on him for a moment to look for something in the cupboards to make for dinner, or at least pretend to so I didn't have to keep any painful eye contact. I was still ignoring the fact that my chest felt lighter, I didn't feel as restless now he was within a few feet of me. _Ignore a problem long enough and it will go away. _

"I'm sorry."

"What, wait?" I turned around slowly to look at Derek in shock. _Surely I had heard wrong. _

"I said, I'm sorry." He repeated softly, head down. His heart was beating slightly faster than it normally did. Clearly he was out of his comfort zone here. And so was I. Derek Hale, apologising to me? What the hell?

"Um, what exactly are you apologising for?" I asked perplexed.

"For being standoffish after I agreed to let you and your brother train my pack. I ignored that fact from the outset; I insulted you and your abilities. And for that, I'm sorry."

All tension in my body left and I moved closer to Derek, taking a seat next to him on one of the bar stools. His head was still down but I saw his nostrils flare. I glanced at him, taking him the taut line of his shoulders underneath his long sleeved shirt, hands grasped tightly together in his lap, head hung. Even in profile I could still see that semi-scowl on his face. An apology from Derek should not have made my heart flutter just a little but I think I realised how hard this had to be for him. This was probably as close to submission as Derek would ever get with another Alpha, particularly a female.

Without even thinking one of my hands shot out and took both of his, pulling them away from his lap. I didn't look up, afraid of his reaction but I could definitely feel his eyes on my head as I took each finger and loosened them from the fists they had formed, soothing each with a whisper of my own fingers on his skin. The digits slowly relaxed in my hand and I mustered the courage to look up under my lashes. His face showed the same surprise I felt, eyes wide. It shouldn't have felt this comfortable, so domestic to have done something like that; but it did, and it terrified me. When his gaze became too much once again, I let go of his hands and turned to face the kitchen again, my head now hanging towards the counter.

_Silence. God, I hate the silence. _

"I suppose I should apologise too." I murmured and I heard his own surprised intake of breath. I was taking a hit to my pride and admitting for the first time in a long time that I was wrong to someone that wasn't Nick. "For acting immaturely when you called Stiles that night and for challenging you that day in the woods. You were right; it's your pack and it's your decision on what to teach them and when. I had no right to call you out on that. So, for all of that, I'm truly sorry."

_And I meant it. I actually meant it. _I almost jumped a mile in the air when a large and calloused hand reached out to touch the top of my hand resting on it. I turned to Derek, who was also turned to face me.

"Apology accepted." He said. _And he meant it too. _

I smiled softly at him, giving his hand a quick squeeze. "You too." His eyes seemed to darken a little, darting between my eyes and lips. _And it's time to let go again, Scarlett. Remember your promise. _

More reluctantly than I would ever admit to anyone, I let go of his hand and moved off the stool and back around the counter again. "So, since we're on civil terms now I suppose we can resume training?" I asked lightly.

Derek's face had resumed its neutral expression while the scowl looked a lot softer, non-existent almost. He nodded. "Yes, we've lost enough time in the last two weeks. Would tomorrow be okay for you and your brother?"

"Should be fine, provided Nick isn't working the graveyard shift at the hospital. I should probably text the girls too; let them know all this fighting is over and we can get back to business again."

"For now." He muttered under his breath as I turned to the pantry. I let out a quiet laugh.

"Yeah, for now. Hey, I'm just about to make something to eat, so, um, would you like to stay for dinner?" I said over my shoulder while pulling out the ingredients for spaghetti and meatballs.

_Would you like to stay forever? _

_Don't even get me started on you! _

"Uh, sure. If that's okay by you." Derek said, a little awkwardly.

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't think it was okay, Mr Hale."

"Derek."

"What?"

"Please, call me Derek. Since we're on good terms,"

"For now." I muttered playfully.

There was a ghost of a smile on his face, changing it completely. _Oh my… _"For now. Shouldn't we be a little less formal with one another?"

"I agree, but you have to stop calling me Ms Keats, okay?"

"Consider it done, Scarlett."

_Oh, that name sounds far too good coming out of your mouth, sir. _

_Really? Now? Shut up! _

"Thank you, Derek." I smiled at him, turning back to the food preparation. I worked for about ten minutes, Derek watching me with mild interest before I heard him speak again.

"Do you need any help with anything?" he asked and again I was shocked at this different side of Derek. It was almost too impossible to believe he existed after all that had transpired.

"Uh, sure. You can start cooking the meatballs in the pan, if you'd like."

"Wouldn't offer if I wasn't sure." He said, rolling up his sleeves a little. "You want anything to drink out of the fridge?"

"Sure, there's some beer in there if you want. I'll take one while you're there."

"The lady drinks?" he remarked, handing me one while taking one for himself.

"You have no idea." I smirked and turned back to preparing the sauce.

Whether it was the newly relaxed atmosphere or the small amount of alcohol now in our systems, we began talking. It wasn't anything life changing or deeply philosophical; I wasn't sure Derek was truly capable of that type of conversations. It was more small talk than anything else, about the pack, about the town and about each other. Nothing deeply personal was bought up between us, for which I was grateful. That was a talk I didn't think I'd ever be ready for. But it was pleasant, it was nice. When Derek wasn't so focused on being the stoic Alpha, the tough guy, the leader of the young pack, he was actually kind of funny. He could let loose away from the responsibilities of the Alpha for a few moments and remember what it's like to be human. I felt a fierce pride that more than once during the course of the preparation and actually eating dinner I made him crack a smile. Not laugh outright, but smile. He should do it more often; but it made me sad to think that something in his life had caused him to lose his ability to feel, to just smile and let go. But I suppose that would be another conversation for another day, with a lot more alcohol involved.

"Well, thank you for dinner but I should probably get going. Peter and Isaac will be waiting for me at the station." Derek said, moving off the stool and grabbing his discarded jacket from the living room.

"My pleasure," I said, raising an eyebrow as he made his way to the backdoor rather than the front. "Of course, the front door is too main-stream."

Derek rolled his eyes, small smile on his lips. "Well, it's not my fault that you left your bedroom window open."

I sighed, leaning against the door as he walked out. "We're going to have to have a discussion about boundaries at some point, Derek."

"Next time, I'll call in advance."

"And not sit in the dark like a serial killer."

"And not sit in the dark like a serial killer." He repeated solemnly. We stood starring at each other for a few skips of a heartbeat, either unsure of how to finish the conversation or something deeper. I hoped it was the first.

_Remember your promise, Scarlett, you can't let that happen. Not now. Not ever. _

…_Not yet? _

"So I'll see you tomorrow? At the house?" Derek asked cautiously, like he was afraid I would say no.

I smiled. "Of course, I'll see you tomorrow Derek."

"Good." Was all he said, but still he didn't move. In fact, it seemed like he had inched closer to me, inches separating us. His eyes had darkened once again, darting between my lips and my eyes. I stood up straighter and despite my conscious telling me to back away I felt myself leaning forward, looking at those lips, slightly parted. Up closer his scent was so strong I could hardly stand it.

_When had his hands grasped my arms? When was my chest against his, hand resting over his heart that was beating like crazy? When did our noses get closer enough to be touching? Oh god, is this really happening?! _

My eyes had fluttered shut God knows when and our lips were just a breath apart. They brushed together, feather soft and I whimpered into his mouth, wanting more but so afraid to take it.

"Scarlett," he breathed. My name had never sounded so reverent before but God damn, I wanted to hear it like that every day.

_Yes! Yes! This it is! _

There was a faint click, sounding a million miles away and then Nick's voice was filling my head.

"Honey, I'm home! Something smells good, by the way. Hey, is Derek here?"

Derek and I jumped apart like lightening had struck between us. The moment was gone and apparently so was the Derek I had come to know over the last few hours. The scowl was back, eyes hard, lips in a firm line.

"Be at the house by 4. I'll see you tomorrow, Scarlett."

"Yeah," I replied weakly, confused. "Yeah, see you tomorrow. Good night Derek."

Derek only nodded in response and then turned and began to run into the woods until all I could hear was his feet and heart, still beating a mile a minute. I stood and stared after him until I could barely hear him anymore. I sighed and leant against the door frame, head in hands.

_What in the fuck just happened?! Was I just about to kiss Derek? No, no, this cannot happen. You're here to help the pack, not to mac on the Alpha. _

_No, you're here to do sooo much more with the Alpha…_

_Again, your opinion is not wanted here! _

"Hey, you okay Scarlett?" Nick asked worriedly. "Did you and Derek have another fight again? The house is still standing, so…"

I sighed and looked up at my brother, giving him a tired smile. "No, we actually agreed to play nice with one another, for the sake of the pack and beating the Alphas."

"That's wonderful!" Nick beamed, giving me a pat on the back. "Very proud of you, taking a hit to your ego I'll bet?" I nodded. "Well, regardless, I'm glad we can get back to business and stop goofing off. Hey, is there any more of that pasta left?"

"Sure, help yourself. I've gotta go call the girls and let them know the 'war' is over."

"Okay, I'll be in the living room soon." I nodded at him, closed the back door and went to sit in the living room, sending a quick text to Lydia, Allison and Erica telling them that training was once again on and that they had could end the boys' misery once and for all. I leant back against the couch, looking up at the ceiling with my mind absolutely reeling. If I had thought having Derek mad at me was stressful and, admittedly, painful then having him so close, so intimate, only to pull away and act like nothing had happened hurt like hell. I couldn't explain it really; it felt like tiny hunter's arrows piercing my chest and I was sorely tempted to punch in his number (sneakily supplied by Peter) and ask him to come back to relieve this feeling, this torture…

But I knew I couldn't. There was no mate; there was no relationship, there wasn't anything. This was my choice in life; to keep to myself and spare anyone who came into my world the despair that I would inevitably bring them…trouble had a habit of following wolves around, particularly this one. I just needed to follow by Derek's example and just act like it never happened, regardless of the pain in my chest or the fuzzy feel in my head. My life and the lives of everyone in the pack were far greater than anything else at this point and I needed to keep that in focus. Besides, no one falls in love at first sight and what happened tonight wasn't love, it was alcohol and possibly some loneliness mixed with the frustration of the last weeks gone by.

Fairy tales don't exist. Mates don't exist. And the future that my she-wolf was pining for with a certain Alpha didn't exist…_that's what the dreams were for. _

_XoxoxoxoX _

**Okay, so I ended it a little angsty but what did you expect? I'm not writing one of those stories where the main characters declare their love for one another five hours after meeting. Love comes with work, not with minutes ;) **

**As always, thank you so much for the kind words and support. Review responsibly my minions. Love Lithium xxoo **


	6. Chapter 6

**HEEERREE'S Chapter Six! Now I know some of you wanted the last chapter to end differently and there were instances of faces meeting keyboards but I promise you guys that action will be taking place at least within the next few chapters so keep your eyes peeled for it. **

**On with the show! **

_XoxoxoxoX _

I was more than a little anxious to resume training again, especially since Derek and I would be working much closer together. The incident of last night had left my nerves rattled but I had resolved to brush it off as if nothing had happened at all, just like Derek had when he left last night. I just hoped that the situation would not turn awkward, lest the pack or Nick find out what had almost transpired the night before.

"Scarlett, why's your heart rate rising? Are you sure nothing happened with you and Derek last night?" Nick asked quietly as we made our way to the old house.

"Nothing happened, Nick, I promise but I'm just a little nervous to see how new dual leadership deal will work. Derek's still their Alpha; it might still be a challenge for him to relegate training to duties to someone else." It's not like I was lying; nothing had _actually _happened last night but I still wasn't about to admit to Nick just how chummy we had almost become.

"Well I think that if you two pig-headed fools can get along for the sake of the pack then you'll be fine."

"I'm not sure if you just complimented me or insulted me!"

"A little of both; oh hey, we're here! Peter! Do you have that book I asked you for last week?" And off Nick ran towards the porch where Peter was sitting with a stack of books. I shook my head in exasperation and went to join the others in the clearing.

"Little Red Riding Hood is here!" Stiles called out as I approached, running up for a hug.

"What?" I laughed as he attempted to pick me up and spin me. He put me down rather quickly. "What's with the nickname?"

"Well, you're a wolf, you're a girl, you happen to be wearing a, my I say, rather fetching red tank top so yeah, Little Red Riding Hood." He finished in a rush. I looked perplexed over at Scott who mouthed the words 'too much Adderall' and I nodded.

"Okay, well, whatever you say buddy." I replied with a pat on his shoulder before going to stand next to Derek. "Hey, ready to get started?"

Derek didn't respond but he gave me a quick nod to indicate he heard me, even if he wouldn't quite meet my eyes yet. _Oh, good to see you're acting normally then. _"Today we're going to be sparring in groups but we'll be using the moves that Scarlett demonstrated a few weeks ago." Everyone sent the others on their sides a surprised glance before turning back to Derek. Was he really going to be using the moves I used to kick his ass? "Nicholas, Peter; you aren't joining us?" Derek asked with an eyebrow raised.

"I think my fighting prowess has been proven many a time now, thank you though." Peter replied without looking up from his book. I sent a similar look to Nick who was also pouring over the tomes on the porch. He sensed my gaze and looked up with a sheepish smile.

"You know I'm better with books than I am with claws. I'm a lover, not a fighter, Scarlett!"

I rolled my eyes. Total bullshit of course; I had an inkling that someone may have just the tiniest crush on a certain someone's uncle. "Well, we may as well get on with it then. So who am I taking in this session?"

Derek looked down at me in mild surprise. "You're actually asking?"

"Well, yeah. You're the Alpha, it's your pack, you just tell me who I'm with, where to go and I'll do it." I said with a small smile.

He blinked a few times before a small smile ghosted across his face. _Oh jeez! _"You're with Isaac and Scott today. Jackson, Erica, Boyd, you're with me." And we separated into groups to begin.

"You guys think you can handle me?" I asked playfully as they took their positions. I noticed they had odd looks on their faces, quizzical I guess you could call it, and it was making me paranoid. "What?"

"Since when are you and Derek actually being civil with one another?" Scott asked.

I blinked for a moment before glancing over my shoulder at Derek, who just happened to be looking at me. The second he caught my eyes, however, he turned back to Erica who had just come charging at him. _Of course, he was listening in on our conversation, but was he embarrassed that he'd been caught looking at me? Yeah, he was doing a super job of acting normal. _

I turned back to Scott and smiled. "We just came to a realisation we were acting a little childishly. Besides, I already know I can kick his ass. I want to see if I can take you guys on now!"

Scott and Isaac seemed to buy the explanation and their eyes began to glow golden in anticipation for practice. A subtle voice floated past my ears.

"I can still take you; any time, any place."

I chuckled under my breath, replying just as softly. "Dream on, Derek." Just as Scott and Isaac came flying at me.

A moment later and two trees in the clearing had been toppled by the wolves. "Now," I laughed as I picked them up from the debris. "Let's try that again, but make it work this time."

_XoxoxoxoX _

The pack fell into a steady routine over the next month, meeting every other day at the old house, usually after the betas and humans had finished school for the day and practiced moves, strategies and potential areas of weakness in preparation for the Alpha packs attack, although said pack had been eerily quiet, only adding fuel to the tension over when and where they would attack.

While Derek and I were fairly accomplished fighters and Nick and Peter, being the eldest of everyone, had more experience, the betas were soon coming along in terms of prowess and control. Scott and Isaac, who I happened to be paired with the most time, were quickly gaining the upper hand in our sparring sessions and on more than one occasion it was I who was the end of yet another tree in the clearing. While my back was cut to shit and my wrist broke on impact, I couldn't have been prouder of my pups.

_Oh, so they're your pups now? When did that happen? What happened to no commitment, _no attachment?

_You look into Scott's eyes and tell me you don't fell it too! _

…_I see your point. _

While I didn't mind getting thrown around for the sake of training, Derek seemed less than impressed by it. Not that he himself hadn't been pinned or thrown in moments of distraction or when Boyd in particular bested him during training; in fact, he seemed pleased that his betas were finally picking up the skills they needed to survive against wolves much more powerful and experienced than they were.

No, the problem, it seemed, lie with _me. _On that fateful occasion where Isaac and Scott had double teamed me and sent me flying into that tree, it had hurt like hell! As I said, the rough bark had torn the skin on my back and I had landed awkwardly with my arm tucked under my body, snapping the bones of with a painful CRUNCH! I had cried out briefly, clutching the wounded limb to my chest as Isaac and Scott came running to see if I was okay. Of course, I was. After all, I was a werewolf and the healing process had begun by the time I had stood up and was gingerly brushing stray leaves and woodchips out of my hair.

"You okay?" Isaac asked worriedly. After all it had been his kick that had sent me flying.

"I'm fine, no harm, no foul." I gave him a reassuring smile as the last little bone in my wrist locked back into place.

"What was that?" a voice growled behind us. We all jumped and turned to find Derek bearing down on us, eyes flashing and scowl deadly. He came to a stop by my side. "You mind explaining that little stunt to me?"

"We were just using the technique that Scarlett showed us! How to attack in pairs!" Scott defended while Isaac looked more than a little nervous. I just stared a Derek, completely confused. Why was he making such a big deal out of this? It was so out of character for him; I didn't know what to think.

"Oh, so maiming her makes it okay then, does it?" He snarled. "What good are we going to be without her to help us? Did you think about that, you morons?"

"Derek, I'm fine!" I insisted quickly, placing a hand softly on his shoulder. He didn't brush it off and I felt the muscles relax slightly. "Honestly, yeah it hurt a little but I'm fine now; you know, werewolf and all, super healing abilities…really, don't be mad at them, they were only doing what I told them to."

Derek turned and took a hard look at me, something strange reflecting in his eyes before he sighed exasperatedly. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, voice still rough with a growl but his hand was gently laid over mine. I nodded again. "Fine. But watch it!" he threated the boys before taking off back over to Erica, Boyd and Jackson, who were conspicuously pretending to ignore the situation. We stood and watched his retreat.

"What…in the hell just happened?" Scott murmured.

_Oh, I think I know exactly what happened Scotty._ "No clue," I said quickly, shaking more woodchips from my hair. "Come on, let's try that again and see if you little bastards can pin me again. Twenty bucks says you can't."

But deep down there had to be more to it, I just knew it. This was not the first instance of Derek losing his temper at one of the betas for being a little too rough during training. He'd sent Jackson home early after he'd delivered a kick to my ribs that had left me gasping and almost tore Allison a new one when I had run into the path of one of her arrows, barely grazing my shoulder. Each time Derek would get all Alpha, eyes glowing, voice in a low, vicious snarl while protectively blocking my path from the others only to back off when I insisted. I found it all a little annoying, truth be told. I was a big girl who was more than capable of taking a hit should she have to so there was no need for him to treat me like I was breakable and freak out on the kids for it. But then there was that part of my subconscious that secretly loved it, just a little too much. I mean, Derek was attractive and he was obviously concerned for my well-being.

_And you know exactly why. You may not want to admit it and Derek is probably too thick to realise it, but you know exactly why he's acting the way he is. _

It was following another of these incidents where Boyd had accidently clawed at my stomach, leaving my shirt ripped and bloodied that people really started asking questions. Training had been called short after Derek decided to pull one of his disappearing acts, moodily speeding off in his car after I had tried to diffuse the situation and prevent Boyd from missing his head. Derek at looked at me furiously with that same indescribable intensity in his eyes and would not be calmed. I brushed it off as best I could with the others, blaming it on the encroaching full moon. But not everyone bought the excuse. People started asking questions. People like Nick.

"What's going on?" he asked bluntly as we walked through the door. I spun around bewildered.

"What do you mean?" I asked. But I knew exactly what he wanted to know.

"I mean, what is really going on between you and Derek?" He said again slowly. He took a seat at the table, arms crossed. This was his serious pose. "I suspected something the night he was here but now?"

I started to feel agitated, looking anywhere but my brother's eyes. "There's nothing going on, Nick. Just drop it."

"No, I won't." I replied firmly. "See, I know you think I'm a bit of an airhead at times but I see a lot more than you give me credit for. I noticed it from the very first time you two laid eyes on one another. And then I find you all flustered and blushing with Derek running into the night and lately he's been so protective of you. I mean, you saw what he almost did to Boyd tonight! That's not just nothing. That's something. And you know what that something is and you're going to tell me…Scarlett, is he…?"

I had been standing there, shaking my head side to side like I wouldn't be able to hear him, tears welling in my eyes. Keeping it all to myself, the dreams, everything; it made this whole awful situation seem less real, something on a metaphysical plane of existence, imaginary and easy to ignore. But now someone outside that imaginary world had taken notice and the awful dream was now an awful reality.

"Nick, please," I begged him. "It's just…it's nothing okay? Just please, just drop it."

"Scarlett, just tell me." He said more softly, standing to wrap his arms around me. I clung to him, sobbing into his shirt. "Why is this so hard for you to say?"

"You know why!" I cried. "I promised myself; fifteen years ago I promised myself that I wouldn't let this happen! I can't go through life losing people anymore, it hurts too much Nick, I don't want to lose anymore and the only way not to lose is to never have it in the first place."

I heard him sigh above my head. "Scarlett, what happened was the worst possible thing to happen to any child, wolf or human. But you're not that child anymore! You beat them just by surviving, by beating the odds! You don't have to be a suffering martyr; you'll only be hurting yourself…and you'll be hurting Derek."

"Nicholas," I begged again.

"No, you have to say it. Maybe not to Derek, who I'm not sure is completely aware of his actions or the reasoning behind it. But you need to say i. I've noticed the changes in you, since you met him. You're more restless, you're not as strong, and that spark in your eyes isn't as bright as it used to be. Admitting it to me won't make any of that change and the time will come when you will have to face Derek and tell him, even if he hasn't figured it out yet. Just, please Scarlett. You're my sister; we're all we have in this world. IF you can't trust me with this then who can you trust?"

He was right. Nicholas was always right. There would come I time when Derek and I would have to talk about whatever was happening and not happening between us. But right now it was just my brother and I, in our kitchen, and safe from the world. I couldn't live in fear forever but right now, I wasn't ready to take that ultimate step.

"Fine," I sniffled and pulled away from his chest and looked up at him tearfully. "Nick, I think Derek's my mate."

"Think, or know?"

"Know," I sighed. "I know he's my mate. It all started with the dreams, really. Deaton said that the dreams are meant to help you recognise your mate when you meet them, and that's how I recognised Derek. That and scent; it felt like home, Nick! Home! And then the pain started; it was dull, at first, but it started to hurt the longer I wasn't around, particularly after that day in the woods. Then he showed up here and things just felt normal, you know? Domestic, pleasant, whatever! And he almost kissed me and then he has to go and get all protective over me and gah! Nick, what am I going to do?"

"You just need play this out, because you know once the wolf in you has recognised a mate, then there's no going back. You either suffer the consequences of not being with them or you claim them. But for now, act as you have and what is meant to be will fall into place."

"But it all feels so ridiculous! I mean, this isn't love at first sight! I barely know Derek at all and now there's this huge part of me that wants to mate with him forever; it's all a little overwhelming."

"It is and it will be. But you just need to be prepared for the day when both you and Derek will have to have the talk about all this. Don't panic until then, just try and stay near him as much as possible, for your health and for your heart. I'd hate to see you turn into one of those girls who gets depressed over a guy."

I let out a watery giggle. "You're right. But I'm still going to avoid any situation that could possibly lead to anything romantic or this conversation any sooner than I want to."

"Good. Take this at your own pace, Scar and everything will be alright. I'm here for you when you need me and until the day that Derek claims you as his own, I'll be the one to protect you."

I hugged him tight and kissed his chin. "And you always have. I love you, Nicholas Garcia."

"And I love you, Scarlett Keats. So…what do you think about a spring wedding? Oh! And pale blue bridesmaids' gowns?"

"I take it back. I hate you."

_XoxoxoxoX _

I had hoped that there wouldn't be any more stressful situations that would lead me into conflict with Derek or bring me any closer to him than I had to be. But as usual, I was way off. Thursday had rolled around and it was the day before the full moon so I was more than a little on edge. It had been a stressful day at the clinic; Deaton had been mysteriously called out by the sheriff's department to identify something strange in the woods, so that could only mean good things. Then a dog had come in, hit by a car and try as I might to take away his pain, he passed away soon after. A big, beautiful dog too; wide brown eyes, just like Nicholas. Today, of all days, it was just a little too much to take.

I had literally just stepped onto my porch and put the key into the door when my phone began buzzing in my pocket. I sighed and pulled it out, seeing it was Erica on the other line.

"Hey, can I call you back? I'm just about to get in the house."

"No! We need you down at the station right now!' Erica whispered urgently.

That had me standing up straighter, panic setting in. "What is it? Are you okay? Oh God, did the Alphas attack you?"

"No! But it's Derek! He's kind of gone postal and we need you here to talk some sense into him; please Scarlett, he's being totally irrational!"

"Erica, he's your Alpha! I have no right to step in and tell him to change a decision he's made." I said exasperatedly. I certainly didn't want another repeat of the last time, especially this close to a full moon.

"But he listens to you!" Erica begged again, a little more desperately. "Please, just come by now and see if he'll listen to you."

I sighed, banging my head against the door. "Fine," I ground out. "I'll be there in ten. Until then, don't let anyone say or do anything stupid to set him off again."

"Thank you so much." She breathed relieved before hanging up. I went to the car and jumped in, starting the engine and taking off down the street a little more quickly than was legal.

"Fuck my life!"

Less than ten minutes later I was screeching to a halt in front of the station and already I could hear Derek growling angrily and the frantic and frustrated voices of the betas and humans on the floor below. I rushed out of the car and down the stairs.

"Stiles, I swear to God I am going to rip your throat out with my teeth if you say anything like that to me again!" I heard Derek roar, pacing somewhere towards the back of the old station.

I groaned wearily. I saw Erica rushing towards me with a grateful smile. "What happened to not doing or saying anything stupid until I arrived?"

"I'm sorry! But we were getting desperate here and we need a voice of reason in our corner! And Peter is not helping at all," she threw an accusing look to the older male who was leaning nonchalantly against the train car. He shrugged and smiled.

"It's not my place to intervene when an Alpha is like this. Besides, this is better than cable television."

I rolled my eyes at him and got down to the floor where I was instantly crowded by the rest of the betas and humans, Stiles clutching at my legs like a pliant infant.

"Oh thank God, you're here!" he cried. "Derek's being a big meanie and threatening to hurt me! You won't let him, will you?"

"No, I won't," I said, helping him to his feet. "But what did you say to make him so mad?"

"I may or may not have called him a sour wolf and a hard ass that needed surgery to remove that twenty foot pole up his ass."

"STILINKSI!"

"Don't let him kill me!" Stiles screamed while throwing himself behind my back.

_Oh, for the love of God! _

"Scarlett, what are you doing here?" Derek growled as I approached him. "This has nothing to do with you!"

"I know that, Derek, but I got a frantic call from Erica saying that you were kind of losing it at them for some reason and they hoped I could diffuse the situation." I said as calmly as possible. No reason to set a whole warehouse full of wolves off.

"You shouldn't have come here! I've made my decision and I'm not going back on that!"

"But that's not fair, Derek! And you know it!" Lydia called from the huddle group. Another roar from Derek had her and the others cowering closer to one another. An Alpha's roar had that effect.

"Look, can someone tell me what this is all about?" I asked, annoyed. "I'd like to know what I'm dealing with here."

"Saturday is our school's spring dance and Derek won't the wolves go because he thinks they'll lose their lunar shit and go ballistic on the other students!" Lydia cried as though missing a dance was the biggest travesty since the Holocaust. "But they've got so much better at controlling themselves and we tried to tell him it would be fine but then he went all Alpha on us!"

I smacked my palm to my forehead and took ten deep, soothing breaths. "You seriously called me down here because of a dance? Really? Come on, guys!"

"But Scarlett, please! We rarely get to do something fun with all the pack commitments and we've been looking forward to this for weeks! Besides, the night of the dance isn't on the full moon; it's the night after so the power will be waning. The wolves have enough control to handle dancing for one night." Allison interceded, everyone else nodding in agreement. Clearly the girls were acting as the spokespeople for the cause.

"No! Enough!" Derek growled. "For the last time, I am not running the risk of having one of you expose yourselves and the rest of us to an auditorium full of humans!"

As I watched it all play out before me I felt less and less like participating. Derek had a point; while the moon's power over us lessened after the first night it was still dangerous, particularly with wolves so young. Jackson had only been a wolf for close to four months and while he was showing progress there was a very real chance that he could lose his temper or get a little too…aroused by Lydia and then _boom_, instant wolf.

But then again, the betas had a point too. For wolves so young, especially ones that had become what they were through the bite they were showing remarkable control. Two full moons had already passed since my arrival without incident from any of them and as I had found out, no one had to be restrained or tethered to avoid them going on a murderous rampage. Yes, they were wolves but they were also teenagers who still had so much more of life to experience, which included school dances and formals. They shouldn't have to be held back or be sheltered because of that. I had missed a lot similar functions because of a full moon or some other wolfish reason but I didn't want them to look back with regret on their younger years, wishing for something that had been and resenting every day what they were for the missed opportunities. _Dammit all! I have a feeling that I'm going to end up regretting this! _

"Derek," I began softly. "Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to let them go to the dance."

"WHAT?" he exclaimed angrily. "What happened to 'I know this has nothing to do with me'? Are you seriously telling me you think it's safe for them?"

"Derek, come on! You know you're pack, and you know their level of control. Last full moon you didn't even have to tie them up with the chains. Look, no matter what phase of the moon or even the time of day, it's always dangerous for us. We're werewolves, for crying out loud! The potential for danger will always be there. But have a little faith in them, okay? They can do this without putting anyone's lives in danger."

Derek growled and moved in close to me. His intent was to intimidate but it had the opposite effect on me. _Yeah, just a little closer and I could show you another use for those teeth! _"Give me another reason why." He said lowly, for my ears only. The growl was still in his voice, but he seemed just a little calmer now we stood a few inches apart.

"Because you don't want them to live in regret." I replied just as softly. "They may be wolves but they are still kids, Derek. Look, I'm sure that at one point or another in your life you've had to miss out on one of those teenage rites of passage just because of what you are. You can't tell me that you never thought about it now and wished you'd had the chance to do it then. I know I do; all the time! Don't let them live their lives like that, Derek. Don't let them live in regret. Please." Hoping to close the deal, I placed a gentle hand on his forearm, squeezing and looking directly into his green grey eyes. We kept the gaze for a few tense moments before Derek exhaled deeply, stance relaxing and shoulders dropping in a resigned sort of way. He looked over at the small group of teenagers who were waiting with bated breath.

"I can't believe I've actually agreed to this but fine; you can all go to your stupid dance."

A loud whoop and cheer went up from the group as they hugged and high-fived in celebration. I tried to hide my smirk at their poorly concealed joy at the news but I wasn't doing much better than they were. Derek looked less than impressed but had resorted to grumbling under his breath. It was just a little adorable.

"I take it you're still not pleased." I said quietly, nudging his arm a little.

"Clearly," he replied with a scowl. "But you're right. They have good control over their other half. I just wish there was a way I could keep an extra eye on them, make sure that nothing happens."

"Oh, well what a happy coincidence because I have the perfect solution!" Peter supplied cheerily. I stared at him surprised. This man had an answer for everything; I wasn't sure whether to find that reassuring or disturbing.

"Oh?"

"Yes. As it happens, not all of the teachers at Beacon Hills High are particularly happy about working on a Saturday night so there will not be adequate supervision. They are looking for volunteers to chaperone the dance and will take anyone willing to help."

Derek seemed a little unconvinced, glancing at me uncertainly. _Are you seriously asking for my opinion here?_ "It would be a good way to watch out for them without being too conspicuous, Derek."

He groaned tiredly, evidently getting fed up with all talk on the subject. "Fine! I'll go chaperone the stupid dance if it means I don't have to clean up any massacres afterward."

The teens cheered again, albeit this time it was a little more sarcastically and with an evident lack of enthusiasm.

"Well, now that this has all been sorted and settled. I think I'm going to go home now. I'll see you all later." I said and began to walk away until I felt Derek's large hand grab onto my wrist and pull me back a little. I turned to look at him questioningly. I was surprised to see his eyes full of mischievous intent and smirk on his lips. _This doesn't bode well… _

"And where do you think you're going?"

"Um, home? Like I just said?"

"Oh no! You got me into this mess, so you're going to join me in chaperoning duty."

"Wait, say what?"

"Good news!" he said to the rest of the pack, smirk still firmly in place. "Scarlett said that she'll be joining us as a volunteer. Lydia, Jackson, could you please tell whoever it is in charge of the dance that we'll be there on Saturday."

"Really?" Lydia exclaimed happily. "Oh, that's wonderful! Scarlett, do you have a dress? No, of course you don't! Saturday morning we'll go shopping at Macy's with Allison and Erica and pick out something stunning for you. This is going to be so much fun!"

I gaped open mouth at the girls getting excited over the prospect of using me as a were-Barbie, wanting to tell them no but I doubted I would have gotten a word in edge wise. As the rest of the pack excitedly discussed their plans for the dance I turned to glare at Derek who was looking at me, eyebrow raised and still smirking.

"You are pure evil, Derek Hale!" I muttered bitterly, wrenching my arm out of his grasp. I let out a tiny startled gasp as he leant down next to me ear, breath tickling my neck.

"I did tell you I would get you back for throwing me against a tree and now I have. Karma's a bitch." He whispered, probably more seductively than he realised. _It's just the full moon, he doesn't know what he's doing. _

Despite myself I felt my own smirk form and leant in close to his ear. I felt his minute shiver and my own wolf howled in victory. "Well played, Derek. But don't even think I'm done with you." And without being in complete control of myself, I twisted my head slightly to the side and nipped at his lobe. The sharp intake of breath that greeted me was reward enough. I pulled back to look at his intense face, I could smell the arousal coming off of him in waves. "See you on Saturday, Derek."

And with that I walked out of the warehouse, hating myself for the lack of control I had just displayed…but loving every second of it.


	7. Chapter 7

**Wow! Once again you all have made my day with your lovely reviews and, of course, those of you who have subscribed and followed the story thus far. You're all beautiful and I thank you **

**There be shenanigans afoot, shall we read on? I think we shall! **

_XoxoxoxoxoX_

Friday was exhausting as the moon rose high and full in the sky, pushing us all to our limits in terms of anger and control. While well acquainted with the moon, I still felt my eyes shift color from blue to red and they stayed that way throughout the night. Nick had to take the night off work as his eyes, usually deep brown, were now piercing blue. Plus the canines were a dead giveaway. Thankfully I heard no word of the betas having any trouble during the full moon which was good for me too; I didn't want to regret my decision in helping them get the dance only to wolf out on some poor innocent human.

By the time that the sun had risen in the sky in the early hours of Saturday morning I felt like I had run five marathons and wanted nothing more than to sleep in all day and recover my strength. Just as I was about to snuggle deeper into my covers when my phone began the song of its people on my night stand. I groaned and briefly contemplated throwing it at the wall but rather than go through the hassle of buying a new one, I decided to answer it.

"Someone better be dead or dying because that's the only thing I'll get up for!" I growled into the phone. An airy laugh floated back to my ear.

"Well, good morning to you too, sunshine!" Lydia chirped. "Time to rise and shine! We have a lot of shopping to do today!"

"Are you aware of the ungodly hour right now?" I asked desperately, starring at the clock in horror. "It's six thirty! On a Saturday, after a full moon! Can't I just wear one of the dresses I own and be done with it?"

"Oh no, you are not backing out of this Scarlett! And don't you take that tone of snarl with me," she replied briskly as I growled lowly. "You are representing us and the pack and I cannot have you_ not _looking your best!"

I flopped on my back and groaned discontentedly. "Lydia, come on! I'm pretty sure there is a clause in the Geneva Convention that says it's illegal to wake anyone up this early on a Saturday for shopping."

"I've read it back to front; there isn't."

As a werewolf there were few people in this world that I had come up against that I wasn't confident I could win in a battle scenario. Unfortunately, I had never encountered a person quite as formidable as Lydia Martin. "FINE! When do I have to up and or ready?"

"Thought you'd see it my way. Be ready by seven thirty, I'll come by and pick you up and then we'll get Allison and Erica. Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"

"Yay! Can't hardly wait," I muttered sarcastically before ending the conversation.

I moaned under the lethargy my body was holding onto, cracking and popping stiff bones and muscles into place. After stretching I threw myself under a boiling shower and quickly dressed in jeans, shirt and flats, braiding my hair off to the side. If I was going to be force to disrobe at a moment's notice then I'd rather not be overly dressed for the occasion. I quickly brushed my teeth, grabbed my bag and made myself a small, hasty breakfast. Lydia was so buying me huge lunch to make up for this! Twenty minutes later I heard a car horn beeping outside the house and knew my time had come. I scrawled a quick note to Nick, explaining where I was and if I wasn't back by at least mid-afternoon to avenge my death.

"Are you excited for the dance tonight, Scarlett?" Lydia asked as I slid into the passenger seat.

"Well honestly, I'll just be standing on the sidelines and making sure you children behave yourself. It's not like I'm going to the dance to, well, dance or anything."

"Oh ye of little faith! Don't worry, I'll find a way to get you up on the dance floor."

"No, really, you don't have to. I mean it, _really_!"

"The way you're acting, I would think that you've never been to a school dance before." Lydia said playfully but on seeing my slightly sheepish expression let out a piercing screech.

"Jesus Christ, my ears!"

"You've never been to a dance before? Like, ever?"

I sighed and banged my head against the window. "I've been to dances before, I guess, just not a lot of them. On the one hand, when I was younger they always seemed to fall on a full moon so it was too dangerous for me to be out. On the other, I just never considered them a big deal, you know?"

"Well, clearly you just didn't go with the right people or have the right stylist available." Lydia said with a smile. "We'll make this your first official dance! And who knows, maybe you could ask Derek for a dance?"

I completely ignored the Derek comment but smiled anyway. "Why thank you kindly. By the way, the stylist thing? Never an issue. Having a brother is more feminine than you has its perks."

She laughed. "True. Oh, we're at Allison's! Hello, Mr. Argent!"

I turned quickly to see an older man walking towards the car to stick his head in the window while Allison made her way out the door. "Hello Lydia. And you must be Scarlett." He said mildly.

I balked just a little, having never been in such close proximity to a hunter before Allison. But now I had her father giving me this searching gaze that made me shift uncomfortably in my seat. "Nice to meet you, sir."

"You are aware of what I am, aren't you?"

_Doesn't beat around the bush, does he? _"Yes, sir, I am. But I am only here in the interest of the pack, not for anything else."

I was taken aback but his smile, which didn't seem to hold any threat but was still a little disconcerting. "So I've heard. We have a code that we follow, Scarlett, and we do not break from that. Just keep doing what you're doing and we'll get along fine."

"Thank you, sir." I mumbled.

"Dad, please tell me you're not giving the whole big bad hunter talk to Scarlett!" Allison groaned appearing behind her dad.

"Nothing of the sort." He insisted. He gave his daughter a kiss on the cheek and hugged her before letting her by to get into the car. "You have fun today."

"I will. Bye." She called as we drove off to Erica's. "I'm so sorry about that! Since my grandfather and my mother, he's been super protective of me. He gets a little too zealous with the pack sometimes."

"That's okay. I've met worse before. Hey, wait, what do you mean, your mother?"

Allison sighed sadly. "She thought she was taking away a threat by trying to kill Scott. Derek showed up to rescue him and they fought. Derek accidently bit her and on the next moon she was going to shift. In my family's line of work, they would rather kill themselves than become what they hunt."

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" I said frantically. "I didn't know, I'm sorry for asking."

Allison shrugged and gave me a small smile. "It's okay, I guess. I realized just how much she had tried to turn my head away from the code and my dad after she died. My grandfather too. Now, things are kind of balanced, even if I am dating a wolf."

"You must hate people like Derek; people like me." I said sadly.

"What? No! I mean, sure I'm certainly not vying for President of Derek's fan club and there are times where I'd like nothing more than to put a wolfsbane bullet in his head," I almost growled at the thought of Derek getting shot but suppressed it as a cough. "But for the sake of the pack and Scott, I get along with him. Plus, I couldn't hate you! You've been nothing be wonderful since you arrived; we may have a fighting chance now."

I smiled at her gratefully. "It's just what I do."

Thankfully the subject was dropped and soon Erica joined Allison in the back seat of the car, grumbling like I had about lack of sleep and feel sore all over. "Welcome to the club, kid." I reminded her but she just kept on grumbling. Ten minutes later we had arrived at the surprisingly large mall and were walking in under the dictatorship of Lydia who had an entire schedule for the day planned.

"Not to discredit your organizational skills but can we get something to eat first?"

"No! We have a schedule to maintain and I will not deviate from that!" Lydia cried dramatically.

"Fine, drag two hungry, tired and irritable she-wolves around and just see what happens. I'm sure it'll all be fine though." Erica said with a shrug, winking over in my direction.

"Okay, we'll make a quick meal stop but then we are shopping! No excuses!" Lydia huffed and we followed her obediently like puppies on a café nearby.

The quick meal stop turned into an hour long chow down session between Erica and I while Lydia and Allison just watched, amused with cups of coffee in hand. Ten plates of food later and feeling much more like my old self, I was ready for shopping. I insisted on paying as I had eaten the most. The first stop was Macy's department store where Lydia laden all our arms with potential dresses and accessories, not stopping for one second to debate any decision she had made. I wasn't game enough to argue anyway. Eventually all four of us found the fitting rooms and sealed ourselves in to assess which dress was best.

Lydia, no surprise, was the first to declare that she didn't need to try on any other dresses and that she demanded that we show her any dresses we thought had potential. Erica soon emerged wearing a dark blue strapless dress that came almost down to her ankles but with a provocative split up the right side. With Lydia's approval, she was done. Next came Allison, who opted for a simple black number with diamante detailing on the waist. She was quite pale anyway, so the dress and stones made her skin seem like it was glowing. And last but not least, there was me…

"Come on, Scarlett! Don't make me come in there and pick one for you!" Lydia called from the other side of the door. I sighed and glanced back at the mirror. This was the last dress I had tried on but I wasn't entirely sure about it. Sure, it fit beautifully but there was something that I felt like I needed ask the girls first.

"Hang on, I'm stepping out now."

A little collective gasp went up from the girls as I emerged. I looked at them nervously, unsure what that gasp actually meant. "What? Does it look bad?"

"No!" Lydia breathed. "You look amazing! That color is perfect for your skin tone."

"You really think so?" I asked, turning to look at myself in the full length mirror. The dress was a deep red halter neck that flair ever so slightly at the hips and came about mid-way on my thighs. The back was plunging, only skin on display until just before the waistline.

"Yeah! You're going to be beating them off with a stick!"Allison concurred with a smile.

Giggling a little I did another spin in the dress and said softly. "Do you think Derek will like it?"

_What – the – fuck? _

"Uh, come again? Did you just say 'Do you think Derek will like it'?" Erica asked like I'd grown another head.

Flustered and mortified I suddenly found my feet rather interesting. "What? No! Why would I care if Derek likes the dress or not?"

"Well, maybe it had something to do with all that sexual tension you two were throwing around the station the night before." Erica said with the tiniest hint of a smirk while the other girls turned to me in shock.

"Okay, I refuse to be the last to know about pack gossip! Details, woman, details!" Lydia demanded.

"It's nothing, really. Um, I'm going to get changed out of this and then we'll go buy our dresses okay?"

"You can't hide in there! I'll get it out of you eventually, Scarlett!" Lydia called at my back as I closed the door in her face. I buried my head in my heads and cursed my brain to mouth filter for not catching that sooner. It was bad enough that Nick knew the truth; it was bad enough that I had blatantly flirted with Derek the night before the full moon and now it was clear that the girls were onto something too! _Fuck my life! _

After taking longer than necessary to redress myself and peel out of the fitting room I tried to dodge the incessant questioning from the girls as we stood in line at the cashiers. They tried subtly, reverse psychology, flattery and even outright threats but what broke me in the end was an all out sneak attack.

"So how big is he in the male appendage department?" Allison asked slyly. I spluttered and blushed deeply, feeling the need to respond.

"No! Of course I haven't seen his cock yet! God Allison, don't you have a boyfriend?" I stuttered nervously, only to have sinking feeling enter my heart when I saw their evil, triumphant looks.

"So…_not yet_, huh? You, my girl, owe us details, and juicy ones at that." Erica smiled as I slumped on one of the benches outside the store. The all sat around me like I was their mother and I was about to tell them a particularly perverted fairy tale.

"Guys, there's nothing to tell. I never thought I'd say this but can we get back to shopping already?" I begged pleadingly. They all shook their heads. _Bitches. _

"Nu-uh! I heard what you guys said to one another Thursday night; you bit his ear for fuck's sake! And the sexual tension rolling off the two of you? Don't even get me started!" Erica replied smirking. "You may as well 'fess up, Scarlett. These two might not pick up on it, but I'm a wolf and I can hear and smell everything."

With a deep, sad sigh I looked at all of their eager faces. "If I tell you, it doesn't go beyond us, okay? I don't need this becoming public knowledge right now!"

"Yay! Come on, give me details, I live for this!" Lydia begged.

"Okay, fine! Well," _Deep breath Scarlett! _"Derek and I…we're mates."

There was a brief pause of silence before I felt both my eardrums shatter. The girls squealed and screamed in delight. I wasn't sure the new was so exciting for them but I eventually had to shush them as they were attracting quite the crowd of onlookers.

"But wait, if you two are mates, why don't you act like it?" Erica asked curiously. It would be stranger to her than the others; she was a wolf and the situation I found myself in could one day be her.

"Because Derek doesn't know yet, or at least I think he doesn't. I knew the second I laid eyes on him but I've been trying to deny it; don't give me that look, Lydia, I have my reasons for it! But I just knew, by smell and by dreams I'd been having. Apparently it's like a wolfish vision that leaves you hints as to who your mate is. Love at first sight but without the love."

"Wow, that's sort of dreamy." Allison breathed wistfully.

"Not really," I said bluntly. "I mean, sure, I've gotten to know Derek a little more over the last few months and in all honesty, I like him. I really do! But it's not love, not by any stretch of the word! The human side of me is still resisting it all but the wolf in me has been on board from day one. By denying your mate once your wolf has acknowledged their existence, you can put yourself in real harm's way. It can make you sick, weak, it can even kill you. While I'm certainly not ready to admit this all to Derek any time soon, I'm sticking close by so my health or strength won't deteriorate."

"Are you sure that Derek doesn't know?" Lydia cocked her head to the side. "He's been acting really strange around you lately. First he lets you into the pack to help train us, then he gets all protective of you whenever you're injured and now he's flirting with you in front of other people."

"On a subconscious level, he probably knows but, like me, is being stubborn about it or doesn't realize that his actions are part of a bigger scheme here. There's something holding him back, I can see that much in his eyes, kind of like me. He will realize it eventually but until then, I'm okay with pretending that nothing out of the ordinary is going on."

"I can't believe what I'm about to say but I really think you should." I stared bewildered at Erica who, despite the news, was the calmest. "Hear me out! Look, I know I'm young and I'm not exactly an experienced wolf but I think you and Derek would work well together. You both have similar personalities, and similar pasts from what I can piece together. There's a part of you that's damaged in some way but I think you could heal it with him. He actually _listens_ to you; do you know how rare that is for him? And you seem to calm him down too, which he really needs. He needs you, Scarlett, whether he knows it yet or not. I don't want completely know why the both of you feel on whatever mental level that you don't deserve to find 'the one' but don't let the past stop you from making a future."

I swiped at a tear that had unconsciously slid down my face and pulled Erica into a bone breaking hug. Seriously, I heard something snap. "How'd you get so wise, so young huh?"

She shrugged, popping her shoulder back into place. "It's a gift. Now come, let's go finish the rest of the day and show those stupid boys how lucky they are to have us on their arms."

We all laughed and made our way to the nail salon that Lydia had booked for us in advance. But while Erica was right I was still unwilling to admit that I was too much of a coward to go ahead with it. Erica had hit the nail on the head when she had said there was something in my past that left me damaged; it didn't want to be defined by my past, I wasn't that child anymore but when something traumatic and tragic happens to you so young, no matter how hard you try and piece yourself together, a little sliver of who you used to be is gone forever. And that's why Derek and I would not do well together; two broken halves don't make a whole, especially with all the tiny slivers missing.

_XoxoxoxoxoX _

"Well, I have to admit, I can't stop starring at myself." I smiled at my reflection in Lydia's side view mirror for the fifth time.

"Of course you can't! You just experienced the Lydia Martin treatment; once you've had it, there's no going back."

"You got that right." Erica replied while admiring her newly painted nails.

The remainder of our shopping extravaganza had thankfully been quiet on the subject of Derek and mates and the like. Mostly it was due to the respect the girls had for my well being but partly it came down to me threatening them with dismemberment if they breathed a word to anyone else about what I had told them. While I wasn't a girly girl I had enjoyed myself immensely and felt a tingle of anticipation at the thought of showing myself off at the dance tonight.

By the time Lydia had dropped us off at our respective homes it was close to four in the afternoon and the dance started at seven. I raided the pantry and kitchen for a filling meal of leftover ribs and fries from the night before as well as half a cake before heading upstairs to get ready. I found a note from Nick saying he had been called into the ER on short notice, something about a car crash, and that he would be home late. I sent him a quick text telling him I wouldn't be far behind tonight but to be safe anyway.

I applied a little make-up to my face; blush, red lipstick and smoky eyes that complimented the shade of my dress. Lydia had insisted on someone overpriced bald guy in a black turtle neck styling my hair; I reluctantly admitted that baldy had down a magnificent job. My hair was shinning blond and flowed mid-way down my back in loose curls, looking something like a 1950s pin up. I quickly pulled the dress on and then the black six inch heels Lydia had also insisted were a necessity. I was just pulling a black jacket over my shoulders and berating myself for being late when I heard an annoying honking from the front of the house. Confused, I opened the door to find Lydia and Jackson parked on the curb in a silver Porsche Carrera.

"Hey, Scarlett! We thought we'd come to give you a ride in style!"

I laughed, a little out of my element. "Um, sure thanks guys!" I clambered as gracefully as I could into the back of tiny car, trying not to laugh as Jackson was smacked upside the head for letting his 'helpful' hands linger on my rear for too long. We sped off towards the school, arriving fifteen minutes later and after breaking almost every speed limit in town.

I was trying maneuver my leg from the tight back seat, looking back to see if my heel was going to get stuck in anything and send me flying. I felt a large hand take mine and absently thanked them, thinking it may have been Jackson or one of the other betas I had seen close by. I stumbled a little and found myself braced against a very familiar chest with a familiar scent invading my senses. I looked up with just enough time for my breathing and heart to stop.

_Oh – my – various – Gods! _

Derek cleaned up well for someone who lived permanently in an abandoned subway station. He had on black dress pants and a crisp white shirt, a few buttons open at the top and blue sports jacket over the top. He'd even shaved, taking years off his face without the constant five o'clock shadow in place. He looked positively mouthwatering and what little self control I was holding onto went directly to chastising my filthy mind for wanting to tear at those clothes with my bare hands. We stood stock still, ignoring everything outside the two of us, staring at one another like it was the first time again.

"You look beautiful tonight, Scarlett." He said softly. I leant into his hand as his rough fingers tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. His voice sounded exactly as it had the night we almost kissed.

"So do you," I was the only reply I could muster, pressing closer against his hard body.

The moment was interrupted by a blinding flash of light to our right. We both separated and blinked furiously so our vision wasn't blurred, only to see Lydia standing there with a camera looking annoyed.

"Damn wolf eyes!" she muttered. "Never going to be able to take a decent photo again!"

"Never mind photos, Coach Finstock is looking for our chaperones, otherwise no entry." Isaac said as a stocky man with wild hair and crazy eyes approached the group.

"McCall, Whitmore! You better not be drinking out here; get your asses in the auditorium now!" The betas and humans scuttled off throwing dirty looks over their shoulders at the Coach who had now rounded on us.

"And who are you two? You're too old to be students, why are you –"

"I'm sorry but we're friends of Scott and Jackson. I believe Lydia may have told you that we were coming to chaperone the dance." Derek interrupted the Coach's rant. He was polite, _actually smiling_, but there was a firm authoritative note in his voice that left no room for argument.

The Coach floundered for a moment before recovering. "Oh, right, uh sorry about that. Ms. Keats and Mr. Hale right?" We nodded. "Well, follow me and we can get this night over with." And with that he stomped off, muttering about the injustices of life and how he needed a stiff drink.

"Well, he seems friendly." I muttered as we walked towards the pounding music. I could smell the room from here; teenage hormones, sweat, sex and the faint sting of alcohol.

"Oh, he's charming alright." Derek replied sarcastically and it made me laugh. He looked at me, stunned I guess you could call his expression, before smiling down at me. He offered me his arm. "Shall we?"

I linked my arm with him. "We shall." And together we entered the auditorium.

The dance progressed normally enough, although from lack of experience I couldn't really comment. The decorations were pretty, lots of sparkles and streamers floating about the place and balloons fell down from the ceiling every once in a while. The soft lighting and occasional pounding strobe light were a little too much at times but the music, for the most part, wasn't half bad and we so far hadn't had to suffer through too many repetitive Nicki Minja or Pitbull songs. The pack seemed to be having a good time too, the two resident couples up and dancing with one another for most of it while occasionally swapping dance partners with the singles so everyone was included. Stiles was particularly entertaining to watch as he attempted complicated dance moves out on the floor, much to the uproarious laughter of Boyd and Isaac. I even heard Derek chuckle beside me once or twice as Stiles attempted a vigorous Funky Chicken routine that saw him fall flat on his back.

There wasn't a whole lot of skill involved in chaperoning a school dance, as it turns out. All Derek and I were expected to do (according to Coach Finstock) was stand around and make it look like we were keeping an eye on things. Clearly it didn't matter either way. I had taken a tentative sip of the punch when we arrived and found that it had already been spiked. Remembering the Coach's words from earlier about a stiff drink, I decided against telling him and he seemed happier for the lie. While we watched the betas and humans dance and enjoy themselves, Derek and I talked. Again, I was reminded about why I liked the guy; he could be funny, witty and charming when he wanted to be and he seemed more relax now. I don't think I'd seen him this ways since the last time it was just the two of us alone. He had me laughing on more than one occasion and eventually we both had to discard our jackets in the humid room. Not that I was complaining; the look I caught Derek giving me as it slipped off my shoulders was reward enough. He had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, exposing more of his arms and I appreciated the view. Throughout the night we had been moving closer and closer to one another so by the time the MC announced that the dance would be wrapping up in just over an hour, we were shoulder to shoulder, whispering into each other's ears. The lower we whispered the harder it was for a certain nosy blond were-bitch and he two human sidekicks to stick their ears in where they didn't belong. Erica gestured inappropriately at times when Derek's attention was elsewhere and I silently reiterated my threat from earlier regarding her throat and my teeth.

"I meant it earlier, you know," Derek said lowly, breathe tickling my ear. "You really do look beautiful. Who knew you were hiding all of this away!"

I laughed. "Hardly hiding! Besides, how do you think I feel? I almost collapsed in shock when I saw you; I had no idea you owned a razor!"

"Clever," he smirked. "So how are you enjoying the dance? I suppose it's not quite the same when you're an adult."

"Honestly I really don't have much to compare it on. But it seems really nice. Plus they're having fun, which is the most important thing."

"How is that possible? Didn't you ever get asked to dances?" he blurted out, clearly before he could stop himself.

"Well, that yes," I admitted, embarrassed I was even revealing this to him. "But it just seemed that every time the opportunity came up, fate was against me. Could be anything for it falling on a full moon, no one asking me or just not wanting to sit alone all night. The few times I did go by myself weren't exactly a barrel of laughs."

"You were alone?" I nodded. "But, didn't you have any friends to go with?"

"Not really, not good friends and I certainly didn't have any pack mates. Nick and I moved around a lot, for a time and it wasn't until after I'd graduated high school that we settled down for more than a year. Besides, no one wanted to date the freaky girl who lived alone with her brother and disappeared a few times every month. It wasn't good for their street cred."

At the time this had all hurt but now I found it amusing. It didn't really bother me anymore; I just added it to the list of typical high school experiences. Derek, however, looked anything but amused.

"Who called you a freak?" he demanded and I giggled, placing my hand on his shoulder.

"Chill out! It was almost eight years ago now, it doesn't matter. It was just easier to not make friends or date anyone when I knew I'd probably be moving at the end of the school year."

"Still," he huffed scowling. "No one should have called you a freak."

"To you I'm not, but I'm just like you. To us, werewolves and hunters and the rest of this supernatural barrel of mysteries is the norm. We grew up in it and were molded by it. But to humans who don't know what we are and the reasons behind our actions, we're the freaks, the oddities. When I was younger, it used to get to me a lot. Now, I just sort of accept it as an inevitability. There will always be that portion of the human race that doesn't understand us."

"You shouldn't make excuses for people," he said, getting that intense look in his eye. It was like he wanted to say more but didn't have the words or didn't want to speak it out loud. "Not like that. You shouldn't have been alone. You don't deserve to be alone."

I was taken aback at how sincere he sounded, like it had pained him that this had happened. I wanted to tell him I didn't really mean it; it was just the fact he had yet to realize we were mates and it was making him say things like this. But I couldn't bring myself to say the words so I settled for quickly kissing his cheek before I chickened out.

"Neither to do, Derek. You don't deserve to be alone."

I had no idea what possessed me to do what I did, or to utter those words. His eyes seemed to cloud over and I realized just how much of the past we were both holding back from one another. He looked conflicted, sad, and angry and I wanted nothing more than to take it all away so he would smile like he did in my dreams. Knowing there wasn't a thing I could say to make the darkness in his eyes disappear I settled for molding myself against his side and taking one of his hands in mine, rubbing my thumb in concentric circles over the skin. I felt some of the tension leave his body but not all of it. Even with heels on I still only came up to his neck so I leant my head forward, nuzzling my nose as gently as I could just under his chin and along his jaw. His scent was heaven and in that moment I didn't care that the rest of the pack were probably watching or that I wasn't supposed to be getting this close to him in the first place. I only cared about making Derek forget that he was damaged and remind him he was human.

I felt his shiver travel through his body as if it had been my own. I didn't need to look up or open my eyes to know that his were closed and his heart was thumping away in a slightly irregular beat. The arm whose hand I wasn't currently holding slipped carefully around my shoulders before pulling me in closer. I gasped quietly so only Derek would hear it.

"Okay, boys and girls, we're just about to wrap this dance up," I heard the displeased groans of the teenagers in the room. I still refused to open my eyes. "So here's the last song for the night dedicated to all the lovebirds out there."

A slow melody came on and I sighed contently. It was sweet, another sugary love song and normally I would found myself making fun of the cheesy lyrics. But right now, wrapped up in Derek's arms I found it romantic. I let out a small whine as I felt him move away and opened my eyes to see him move in front of me. He was still holding onto my hand.

"Care to dance?" he asked. _Oh, the husky voice! What's that sound? I do believe that's my heart exploding. _

Words failed me so I smiled shyly and nodded, allowing Derek to lead me out onto the edge of the dance floor. He spun me in a quick circle before pulling me in close again. I wasn't going to be able to breathe if he kept this up! One hand came around my waist and the other held my hand in his. I put my remaining hand on his shoulder, resting my head against the junction of his neck and shoulder. In that moment, I didn't care that I wasn't supposed to want a mate, I didn't care that somewhere out there, there was another pack just waiting to tear us apart. I didn't even care the Allison, Lydia and Erica had pulled away from their respective partners to dart into my line of sight, making sexual gestures and generally voicing their approval through thumbs up. All I cared about was that I felt like that little sliver that had been missing for fifteen years had found its way back into my heart again.

We swayed gently in time to the beat of the music, his head coming to rest on top of mine. I wanted the moment to last forever and could not think of a single thing that could make this any more perfect. That is, until I felt his gentle hand underneath my chin, tilting my face up to his. It was just like before, our noses touching lightly and our breaths mingling. His green grey eyes looked darker under the lights, searching mine for any sign of hesitation. When he found none, time seemed to slow as his closed the tiny distance between us.

I may have stopped believing in fairy tales fifteen years ago but I was willing to have a little faith as Derek Hale kissed me for the first time…

_XoxoxoxoxoX _

**CLIFFHANGER! Dun-dun-duuuun! Oh, I'm an evil one but that's why you love me. I think this has to be the longest chapter I've done so far and I have to say I'm damn pleased with myself **** but the only opinions that matter are yours so review, subscribe and the like and let me know what you all think. **

**Until the next time, love Lithium xxoo **


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello everyone, did you miss me? ;-) **

**First off, I'd just like to apologize profusely for my extended absence. I won't bore you all with the details but I've had a rough couple of months since we last spoke and unfortunately the little muse who had kept this story going seemed to have deserted me during this time…until I found this draft for Chapter 8, which I have now edited and **_**finally **_**completed. **

**Second, thank you so much to the followers, reviewers, favorites etc. in my absence; you are what has fueled my passion for writing again and I can't thank you all enough. **

**But enough dick-suckery for now though, I've kept you in suspense long enough. Without further ado, here is Chapter 8 of The New Town Alpha. **

_XoxoxoxoxoX _

"Scarlett Evangeline Keats! I swear to whatever gods exist that if you do not open this door right now, I'm going to kick it down!" Nick bellowed. He didn't sound angry anymore, although god knows he was livid when he started half an hour ago; now, he just sounded tired and exasperated.

"Nick, just leave it okay? I'm not coming out yet. I know I'm being selfish, I know I'm being irrational but you kicking down my bedroom door isn't going to change that. Just, please. Leave me be."

"But we need you Scarlett! The pack needs you, the girls need you…_he _needs you!"

Silent tears squeezed through my clamped eyelids and I buried the pained howl bubbling in my chest. I pulled my knees closer up to my chest and buried my head between them, trying to ignore the stabbing pain under my ribs. "Don't do this to me Nick. Just leave me be. Please."

I heard his sad sigh and imagined him leaning his forehead against the door wearily, so though to touch me and connect through the wood. "Fine. But this isn't over, not by a long shot." And with that he departed, his footsteps creaking on the stairs.

Once I was sure he was gone I straightened out my legs and lay down on my side, facing my open window. I knew it was dangerous, almost temptingly inviting to do so but I couldn't help it. Smelling the fresh pine, the damp earth…it was the only thing keeping me on the brink of sanity and the only way I was able to force myself out of bed for the last two weeks. Then again, it served as a form of self inflicted torture. Just a reminder of what I had been given but was too terrified and stubborn to embrace. The sun was setting once again on another wasted day spent pent up like a spoiled brat in my room. I could hear Nick talking on the phone with someone, presumably Erica who was the only member of the pack to still attempted to call every day. I felt drained and weak from crying and hadn't eaten a thing since yesterday afternoon. As my eyes fluttered, my fingers unconsciously reached for my shoulder to trace the puckered bite mark just near my neck. One more tear ran mournfully, quietly onto the bedspread before my eyes shut for good.

_XoxoxoxoxoX _

_The dream was always the same. Except this time it wasn't a dream. It was a memory, playing over and over again in my unconscious mind. I loathed its very existence but in a bittersweet torture I yearned to watch it. It was something akin to having an outer body experience, I suppose. I could see everything as though it were playing on a big screen just for me, all by myself in the theatre of my mind. _

_As Derek's lips touched mine the night of the dance, it was like a fire had seeped into my veins and had taken over so quickly and ferociously that it could not be extinguished. It had started slowly, innocently enough but mere minutes later it was deep, hungry and passionate…a little too inappropriate to be taking place on a dance floor in the midst of the pack and the rest of the human teenagers. Derek pulled away reluctantly and I whined at the loss of contact. His eyes and mine were flashing red as he smirked down at me but it still held some sort of tender reverence to it. I knew at that moment the only keeping me from crumbling to the floor was his arm around my waist. _

"_We're leaving." He'd announced, not so much to me but to the pack who were watching with shit eating grins on their faces. It wasn't even a question; it was a command. The very thought now still had me shivering in delight. His arm was still tight and protective around my waist as he went to collect our coats and then headed quickly for the door. _

_We reached his hulking black Camero and before I could even open to the door to slid into the passenger seat, Derek had me pinned up against the door, his whole body flush with mine as he attacked my lips and my neck with frantic nips, kisses and licks. I was going to come undone (in a high school parking lot of all places!) if he didn't stop so I pushed him away but only so an inch separated us. I couldn't stand the thought of him being too far away at this moment. _

"_If you don't stop now, I'm afraid we're going to scar a lot of young, impressionable children." I panted, smirking as his eyes flashed again. _

"_What are we waiting for then?" he replied huskily, planting another sound kiss on my lips before practically leaping over the car and throwing open the door. I threw myself in the passenger seat, laughing and only just managed to close the door before he peeled out of the parking lot in a squeal of tires and acrid smoke. I had no idea where he was taking us but I didn't question it. In that brilliant moment of insanity I would have followed this man to the ends of the earth and back. It was silent between us; no words were really needed. I didn't care if Derek knew, if he had known all along or had just figured it out; all I knew was that I wanted him, I wanted to be mated to him and I wasn't about to let the stupid, irrational fears pinching at the back of my head take that away from me. _

_Ten minutes later we were pulling up in front of the subway station. I didn't wait for him to be a gentleman and open the door for me. By the time I had slammed the door shut he was on me again, hands everywhere but nowhere fast enough. I snaked my arms around his neck, one hand going to pull viciously at his dark hair so I could expose his neck to my hungry, wanton lips. I had barely registered him moving before we were at the bottom of the stairs and heading towards one of the makeshift beds in the train cars. The wind was knocked out of me for a brief second as my back met the surprisingly soft mattress, only to have Derek's heat and presence overwhelm and suffocate me seconds later. Our lips never left each other's skin, not even to tear the clothes from our bodies; the dress was ripped beyond comprehension, just scraps of tattered red silk. _

_Sweat had started to accumulate on our bodies as Derek pulled me up and flipped us so he was in a sitting position and I was seated in his lap. The fire between us seemed to have stoked and simmered some in the frantic rush from the dance to the station. Now was not about the attack or anything violently physical. Now was a time for exploration, searching the other's body and finding out what made them tick, the areas we'd always sought out in some small way or another. I ran my hands slowly over all over him, trying to savor his scent, the feel of the hard planes of his stomach underneath my hands, the muscles bunching up underneath his shoulders, the tattoo that rested on his back. His hands, so large and warm and perfect, drifted lazily and contentedly over my back, across my chest, through my hair and gently over my face as if committing it all to memory. We leant in and brushed our noses together, a sensation that was foreign and familiar at the same time. _

"_How long have you known?" he had asked suddenly. My eyes flew open, at a loss of how to respond. I wanted to lie, wanted to tell him it had come out of nowhere but it seemed that he'd been in the same state of denial that I had. No more lies. Not anymore. _

"_Since we first met, right here." _

"_Almost two months ago?" I nodded, albeit a little sheepishly. Derek smirked again and a little thrill of delight ran up my spine. "Then I guess we have a lot of time to make up for." _

_I turned my head slightly and began to nip at the column of his throat. "I suppose we do." _

_Derek growled, head tossed back. I felt one of his arms come under me, lifting me up and positioning me so I was directly above him. Slowly, almost torturously so, he lowered me so I became impaled, inch by inch, on him. I cried out, my voice echoing back to me in the empty station. I was a little unprepared for the girth and size but distracted myself by feasting on his lips again. Even now, replaying in my head I cannot describe the feel. Perfection? No, it didn't even come close to describing it. I felt full, safe, loved and needed; it was like every unconscious wish you never knew you had coming true all at once. _

_Slowly, Derek began to move his hips upward as I tried desperately to steady my breathing, clutching to his back. The rhythm was steady, deliberate but it sent shockwaves throughout my body. For a few brief moments, all I could do was hold on and whimper as he pulled out and then slowly slid back in, so I could feel every miniscule part of him. Soon I started to grind down as Derek thrust up, which he seemed to like if his growls and groans were anything to go by. We whispered urgently into the others ear; of what, I couldn't say or of its significance. I was too lost in Derek, in the building tension and heat between us and all the beautiful possibilities it held. _

_The pace became faster and harder, more guttural and primal. One particularly hard thrust had me clawing down his back, leaving small trails of blood in my wake. This had awakened the wolves in both of us, as Derek suddenly growled and flipped our positions, pinning me to the mattress while licking, nipping and sucking every small inch of skin he could get to. I mewled my approval and arched against his body, surprised at how quickly my wolf was willing to submit. Our growls and moans reverberated off the metals walls sounded twice as loud, the sound of slapping sweat soaked skin only added to the symphony of erotic sounds surrounding us in a heated cocoon. _

_Our movements became sloppy and frantic. I could hardly breathe for the heat of his body pressing down on mine, suffocating me but pulling me in deeper until I was on fire with the intensity of it all. I wound my legs around his hips to pull him in deeper…no matter how deep, how hard, it didn't feel like enough. Derek's growls shook me as his hands tangled hard and sharp in my hair, snapping my neck back almost uncomfortably so I could him in the eye. His eyes had changed and his canines descended. _

"_Tell me," he demanded. "You. Are. Mine." Each word was punctuated by a particularly hard thrust that had me crying out. _

"_I'm yours," I replied breathlessly. "Only yours." _

"_Fuck, Scarlett! Say it again, louder." _

"_You, Derek…oh fuck; yes…I belong to you Derek, no one else." _

"_Yes! Mine, forever." He snarled before his mouth descended swiftly on the junction between my neck and shoulder, biting down into my flesh. I felt the warmth of the blood flowing down my body as he latched on and the deepest, most guttural howl I've ever released came roaring from my mouth. It was pleasure and pain all at once and I didn't know what to do with myself. It was all too much; surely I would die from the heat, the pleasure, the pain? Instead of death, instinct took over and craned my neck to bite down onto Derek's shoulder, giving it the same treatment he had given mine. His head jerked back as he let out a loud and vicious howl, shaking the train car, the walls of the station. _

_My orgasm had hit without warning, so fast and brutal and bright that all I could do was arch up, body convulsing and howl, howl like my life depended on it. Derek's roar accompanied mine and I felt his heat and seed seep into me, heavy and thick but so damn erotic I almost demanded more. _

_It took almost fifteen minutes before I could hear our hearts beating normally and our breathing slowed. I could feel the skin on my shoulder slowly knitting itself together again, although it felt tight like a scar would remain. I hadn't known it would stay there so evidently and starkly, but it had. Nothing was said between us, although there was much to discuss. Nothing was done slowly, although we should have taken the utmost care. Instead, we simply lay there, Derek still on top of me whilst we smiled at one another, gently caressing and soothing hands along heated skin. Lips brushed softly and tentative as we let our bodies relax into the mattress and entwine our limbs, almost fused together. I rested my head over Derek's heart and it felt like home. My eyes felt heavy but I fought to keep them open. Derek seemed to notice this and chuckled, brushing strands of hair from my face and placing a chaste kiss on my forehead. _

"_Get some sleep; you don't have to stay awake. We can talk more in the morning. Besides, you'll need your strength." _

_I had looked up at him, eyebrow raised. "Oh really? Well, maybe I have enough strength already." _

_In the blink of an eye I found myself hoisted over Derek, arms hard and tight, keeping me close. "Don't make promises you can't keep Scarlett." _

_I smirked and leant forward to capture his bottom lip between my teeth. "I always keep my promises Derek." _

_With a fierce, possessive growl Derek had entered me again and I felt like I was right where I belonged. "Mine." I had whimpered into his mouth. His; utterly and completely. _

"_Mine." He echoed _

_XoxoxoxoxoX_

I shot up in bed with a pained whimper, the constricted feeling in my chest overbearing and insistent. I tried to stop the tears but they fell quietly down my face. For two straight weeks, this had been my punishment for being a coward; for running away.

I had lost count of the times Derek and I had coupled that night but I woke up in the early hours of Sunday morning, feel warm, more than a little sore but wholly satisfied. Derek lay behind me, a protective arm draped firm across my ribs, his breath tickling the hairs at the back of my neck. For a brief and fleeting moment, I was content and happy. I had found my mate, my one and only partner through my life and I could not have been happier. But then the reality of it began to sink in; I had mated with Derek. There was still an Alpha Pack waiting in the shadows to attack at any given moment. There was a very real chance that I could lose him before I truly had a chance to have him. _We hadn't used protection and there was a chance I could bring a pup into this world…alone. _I had begun to panic and as quickly and quietly as I could, I borrowed a pair of shorts and a shirt and without a backwards glance, fled the subway station like the coward I am. Since that day, I had barely left the house, let alone my bedroom and had cut off communication with everyone in the pack.

Was I being selfish? Absolutely. Was I sabotaging my life this way? More than likely. But would it prevent me from living through the pain of seeing my mate maimed and killed by other wolves? Definitely.

I heard Nick snuffling and snoring away in the next room and glanced at my bedside clock. It was now 1 am but I couldn't go back to sleep again. My eyes drifted to the open window, the darkness of the encroaching forest seeming so inviting and safe; just the place to lose myself in for a night. God knows I needed it and maybe, just maybe, I could start working past this rut I had dug myself into over the last fortnight. I found a pair of old sneakers and slipped them on. I had fallen asleep in my tank top and jeans but didn't bother to change those. With a quick backwards glance towards Nick's wall, ensuring he was still out like a light, I did a little vault from the window sill and landed neatly near the back door without so much as a sound. I jogged slowly towards the edge of the trees and stopped. Was this really a good idea after all? I was weak in this state, having barely eaten or slept in days. Being separated from Derek, no matter how voluntary, didn't help matters. There was a very real possibility that I could run into him in the woods at night, a confrontation I was nowhere near ready for. And what if, by some stroke of bad luck, I came across members of the Alpha Pack? They'd be picking pieces of me out of the trees for weeks! With all these thoughts floating through my mind, my feet began to move on their own accord and I soon found myself running fast and hard between the trees.

I took deep, gulping breaths of the fresh night air, once again back in my element. My muscles felt stiff and even protested at the vigorous pace of my feet but I needed it. I needed to feel alive, feel like the she-wolf I was before I well and truly lost my mind cooped up in my room. My previous concerns disappeared to some safe corner of my mind. They didn't matter right now. The only things that did were the silence of the forest, the fresh clean scent of the trees and the coolness of the wind making them dance in the starlight.

After some time spent running in circles through the area, I slowed to a steady jog and decided to pause for a time in a clearing, just to catch my breath before leaving on my way. It was only when I looked up to brush stray strands of hair from my face did I notice exactly which clearing it happened to be.

"Oh, you have got to be shitting me!" I growled lowly.

There before me stood the charred remains of the Hale House.

The whole clearing smelt of the pack; they'd been here as recently as the day before last. My heart clenched tight at the familiar smells. They had been sparring again, that much was obvious by the disturbed earth on the ground from the running feat. Two more trees lay splintered and shattered on the opposite side. I could smell them all and it made my heart ache. Worst of all, the clearing smelt entirely too much like Derek.

He was everywhere, ingrained in the wood and the dirt and in the very air I was desperately trying to suck into my lungs. My eyes darted around in a panic, as if he would emerge from the trees at any moment and take me by surprise. No; I couldn't see Derek again, not like this and I certainly didn't deserve to after what I had done. As far as mates went, I was probably the worst in history. I wanted to turn around and sprint deep into the trees again; hoping to escape his scent, the invisible presence that exuded over the area but my feet wouldn't let me. I was frozen on the spot, starring wearily at the house, so creepy and silent in the dark night.

_You should go inside and check it out. You know, just to make sure he's not there. _

_Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you? No. I'm not going anywhere near it, we're leaving. _

_We'll see about that. _

For the second time tonight my feet moved of their own accord towards the dilapidated porch of the house, cursing my feet as they noisily crunched through the fallen leaves on the ground. I stood staring at the partially open door, leading into an inky foreboding darkness. His scent was stronger here, like he'd stayed here in the last few days but was weak enough to tell me he wasn't here right now.

I moved forward gingerly and pushed on the door. It opened with a soft creak and the interior was lit slightly by the dim light of the stars. Inside looked just as terrifying and creepy as the outside. Old furniture and belongings remained scattered, charred and burnt beyond recognition in some cases. The thinning, faint scent of burnt flesh and death seemed to be bled into the surroundings. The staircase in front of me looked about ready to give out after the fire and being exposed to the elements for so long. Windows were shattered and hollow, allowing the evening breeze to seep through like poison and chilling everything it touched. I let out an involuntary shutter and pressed forward. My ears were sensitive to any movement but so far the only thing I had picked up on was the frantic scurrying of a mouse somewhere near what used to be the kitchen and the beating of my own heart.

I knew how dangerous this was, I was trespassing on another Alpha's territory, one whom I was mated to and had left without a word to the morning after. How would he react if he saw me standing here, alone and in his family's home? He'd probably be furious, angry, miserable…and more than a little amorous. In the early stages of a mating bond, that was apparently a given. At the very thought of Derek's hands on my skin again I shivered, although this time it certainly wasn't from the cold. Shaking away my body's treacherous reaction I shuffled through the house, room by room.

The devastation was obvious. To think that ten years ago, the whole Hale family had lived here. Cousins, uncles, aunts, husbands, wives…Derek had lost everything that day. So had Peter, burned and comatose for years before healing, and killing Derek's only other living relative in the process. Loss was something I could relate to well, but seeing the destruction of a once proud house and family, it was almost too much to bear. Eventually I found myself in one of the old upstairs bedrooms in the half of the house where the roof hadn't collapsed yet. In one room, a beat up old mattress lay next to a window, ratty sheets and pillow still resting messily on top of it. This must have been where Derek stayed for a time before taking up residence in the station. The scent emanating from these items was overpowering to say the least so I did not linger for long, the tight constricting feeling was returning fast. Just walking around the old house had left me a little emotionally exhausted and in my present state, the physical weakness would not be far behind. I still had to make it back to the house. I estimated the time was probably close to 2am now and if Nick woke soon and found me gone, he'd be in a panic. It was time to go back to the safety of my room and bed.

I walked down the silent corridor and went to walk down the stairs to the front door. It was there, standing at the foot of the stairs in perfect darkness, red eyes shining vividly, that I saw Derek. I froze in fear and anticipation, both of us staring the other down, daring them to make the first move. How had I not noticed his heartbeat? How had I not noticed his scent getting stronger? _Godammit, he's probably been following me all night and I've been too stupid to realize! _I saw his hand twitch as he prepared to dart up the stairs towards me but I didn't wait around. I took off back towards the rooms, darting into the first one where the window was missing. Giving little pause I jumped out and landed awkwardly on my ankle two floors below. I gave a sharp cry in pain before staggering to my feet and limping as quickly as I could for the trees. I could already feel the bruised ligament healing but my speed was considerably reduced. I had made it all of ten feet into the cover of the foliage before a loud roar ripped through the night. I visibly flinched away from the noise; it was deep, angry and desperate, a male alpha calling for his mate. Before I could stop myself, I let rip a howl so loud the leaves shook themselves from the trees.

_You are not making this easier for him, dammit! Let's just get out of here! _

_I'm not making it easier for him…I'm making it easier for us. No more running Scarlett. No more! _

Despite the instinct to stay put and wait for him to catch me, I tore away from the scene; my ankle now completely healed, I took off as fast as I could. Sweat had begun to collect on my skin, breath coming in pants. I didn't even pause long enough to find where Derek was. He could be behind me, cutting me off from the sides or had even run ahead and was waiting for me in front. I had no idea. All I knew was that I needed to get out of there fast. After what seemed like miles, I had slowed down and partially collapsed against the trunk of a huge redwood tree before sinking to the ground. I could not hear or smell Derek in the vicinity, and that calmed me somewhat. I drew my knees up to my chest and rested my head against my knees. I had done it again; run from my mate and for what? Because I was scared that history would repeat itself, and at the end of the day I would be left with nothing again. There is only so much loss you can endure before it snaps you and breaks you. I was already close to breaking point and had been for fifteen years. Losing Derek now would push me over the edge.

Suddenly there was a snapping of twigs and rustling of leaves behind me and I shot up from my seated position, turning to face Derek or whoever had come across me this time. I got a quick glimpse of golden eyes before two large and familiar arms wrapped tight around my body, pinning me to a solid chest.

"Thanks Boyd, I can take it from here." Derek's voice sounded next to my ear.

"No problem Derek. See you later Scarlett." I heard Boyd's voice casually reply before the gold eyes disappeared and his quick footfalls began to fade away. All was still for a moment before I began to struggle in Derek's arms as hard and viciously as I could. I snarled and growled and writhed like the wild animal I was inside and at one point even attempted snapping at his neck. But Derek remained immobile and calm, barely moving an inch during the struggle.

"Let me go, God damn you!" I growled, thrashing violently to free my arms. "Just leave me alone!"

"I don't think that's going to happen, Scarlett. You and I have much to discuss." Derek's reply was firm and terse. _Oh yeah, he was mad. _

"Just let me go! Please, its better off this way just let me go, please!" The growls were subsiding, turning into desperate whimpers and pathetic pleas. After all the exertion I had put my body through tonight, I felt like I was barely able to stand.

I was spun around in his arms and held firm again to his chest. One large hand went to tangle in my hair roughly, jerking my head back so I had nowhere else to look but his eyes. They weren't red anymore but they were just as bright and vivid, twinkling in the tears collecting in my eyes. I braced my hands against his chest in another feeble attempt to free myself. He was scowling down at me but it looked half-hearted. There were circles under his eyes, the five o'clock shadow seemed a little thicker than before and his hair was mused and wild, like a brush hadn't been run through it in days. His wife beater tank was dirty, his jeans ripped. Despite looking ragged and exhausted, he was still the most handsome man I had ever laid eyes on. I was trying my hardest to ignore the relief and warmth that seeped into my bones with his body heat because I was trying to escape, but those feelings weren't making it easy to leave. I sniffled miserably once again and squeezed my eyes shut.

"Please, Derek. Just let me go. I'm not worth this. Let me leave, pretend none of this ever happened. Just, please…I can't do this."

"You're going to have to do better than that, Scarlett." He growled, arms tightening. "Because after what you've put the pack through…what you've put _me_ through, you owe me a fucking good explanation. I am certainly not letting you go."

"Look, it's just easier this way okay? I can't do this! It'll be easier on both of us if you let me go now." I begged again, hands balling into fists over the fabric of his shirt.

"How will it be easier, Scarlett?" He demanded angrily. "Huh? Will it be easier losing your strength and sanity because we're apart? Will it be easier breaking away from the pack, _your _pack? Or maybe it'll be easier when you die because you decided to run away from this."

"Stop it!" I cried weakly. "Please, Derek. I know what this is! I know we're mated, I know what that means but for fucks sake, I can't lose another person in my life! I've lost everything, I can't lose you too!"

_Holy. Shit. _I had just said it out loud. I had just admitted the one thing keeping me from Derek, keeping me from embracing my mate. Now the words hung heavy in the air between us and I knew that just bullshitting my way out of this was not an option. Derek would want the truth, it was too bold a statement to make and wave away vaguely.

"What do you mean?" he asked quietly, an edge to his voice. "You have Nicholas, how have you lost everyone?"

I sighed; frustrated that he was being so dense. It didn't take a genius to look at Nicholas and I and realize that we were not blood relations. Hell, we weren't even distantly related. But clearly Derek was asking for a detailed account. I managed enough strength to push away from him and his arms dropped to his sides. There was only a foot of space between our bodies but for now, that was enough.

"In case you hadn't noticed, Nick and I aren't blood related. I mean, hello? I'm pale, short and blond and he's clearly Latino. His last name is Garcia and mine is Keats. Thought that would have been a dead give-away."

Derek's eyes narrowed and he barred a few teeth. "Don't be a smartass about it! Just get on with it. You owe me this."

I glared right back at him and desperately tried to ignore the pangs in my chest. This story was one that I wish I had buried but had haunted me like a ghost for fifteen years. How could it not? And now, under possibly the worst circumstances, I had to repeat it to an impatient Alpha who looked ready to rip my throat out…and then fuck me into the ground.

"You really wanna know Derek? Well, fine. Here's a bed time story for you! You wanna know why Deaton asked Nick and I to come to Beacon Hills in the first place? You wanna know how I knew Deaton to begin with? It all comes back to an Alpha pack."

Derek seemed confused. "You mean 'the' Alpha pack?"

"No! I mean 'an' Alpha pack! There's been more than one of this kind throughout the years and god knows the one that is currently hiding out here isn't going to be the last. Nick and I are more intimately acquainted with these sick bastards than you know."

"Is there a point to this?"

"Chill the fuck out, Derek; this isn't easy for me to explain." I growled angrily while taking another step back. Getting angry now would not help the situation at hand so I stared intently at the ground while breathing deeply through my nose. _Here it comes. _"When I say I lost everyone, I mean I lost my family, the _Keats_ family. There were seven of us, all living in together. My father, mother, two older brothers, Matthew and Logan and one younger, James, Grandma Sophia and me." I paused to smile, bittersweet, as their faces flashed before my eyes. I was ashamed to admit that I had barely pictured them in years. "We used to live in Minnesota, just outside of St. Paul. What can I say? It was pretty fucking idyllic. There weren't many like us around but everyone that was like us knew my dad and knew my family. I was ten; almost eleven at the time, when word started to get around that there was a pack in the area, a pack comprised of all alphas. They'd kept a low profile but there were rumbles that they were looking to recruit from the families in the area; they wanted children to mold in their own image for their pack. And as you know, they only way to create an alpha in a family pack is for the current alpha to be killed, to force a turn. I only remember these conversations because my mother was terrified that they'd come after my brothers and I but dad didn't think we were in danger. Thought his reputation in the area would be enough to keep us safe."

I took a seat on the fallen log, feeling my legs beginning to shake and quiver. My nerves were frayed and although he stood impassively in front of me, Derek could have disappeared and I wouldn't have even noticed. The memory was playing like a home movie before my eyes as I tried to keep my wits about me. I was lost in another place and another time.

"I remember the day like it was yesterday. It was just coming into winter and it was starting to snow. I'd stayed over at a friend's house after school but I'd decided to walk home rather than bother my mom and dad. I knew they'd be mad; the 'bad' pack was out there after all, but I still walked because it was only two blocks away. When I reached the driveway, I could smell it already. Blood. Like the house had been painted with it on the inside. It made me gag, it made me nauseous. I could only hear Logan's heartbeat and I could barely smell the rest of my family over the blood. I panicked; I ran in the house, screaming for everyone and anyone. I slipped…" my voice caught, choked with emotion I had thought I'd buried long ago. Deaton had been there to take care of the mess, Nick only received the synopsis…no one had ever heard the whole story, until now. Derek was still standing in front of me, face unreadable. "…I…I slipped on a pool of blood just inside the door. It was everywhere; the ceiling, the furniture, all over the pictures on the wall…everywhere. I got up and ran to the living room but it just got worse. They were all there, just thrown on top of one another like they were nothing! Mom, Dad, Grandma, Matthew, James… James hadn't even turned five yet. I kept screaming, screaming for Logan because I could hear his heartbeat. I ran to the kitchen and there he was…but so were they."

"The Alphas?" Derek prompted when silence lay between us for a few moments. I nodded numbly glancing at the ground.

"Four of them, all older men. One had Logan by the throat and the others just stood and laughed. They seemed to think it was hilarious when I came careening in, covered in my family's blood. Logan started yelling at me, telling me to run for it, to save myself but I didn't. I looked at the man who had my brother and begged;" I felt an anger I had not experienced for fifteen years bubble to the surface. "I begged him to spare my brother, to let us live and we'd do whatever they wanted us to do. Just please, don't take my brother away from me. But he just laughed like the others. He started taunting me with what he'd done with the rest of the family, told me it was my fault that they were dead, if I'd have been home on time then they would have been spared…I was the one that they had been after all along. I was going to become an Alpha, not one of my brothers like we'd all thought, and join them, but first they had to eliminate all obstacles…" With a final stabbing blow, as if I was the scared, tiny child in the blood soaked kitchen again, I dropped to my knees and howled. "_THAT WAS WHEN THEY SLIT MY BROTHER'S THROAT IN FRONT OF ME! _They laughed as if it was the funniest fucking thing they've ever seen; to see a ten year old child crawling over to her brother's corpse and screaming, begging for him to come back to, not to leave her alone."

I felt the maniacal, bitter smile that had graced my face that day returned; I felt out of control, out of my own body. "But their planned backfired. Sure, I became an Alpha…I was the last of my family left alive…but they didn't expect their new pack member to fight back. That's the thing about Alphas, you know? An alpha doesn't submit; you mess with family or territory and there's no telling how they'll react! I wish I could say I remember ripping them apart and ending them like they'd ended my family but after I felt my eyes shift for the first time, everything sort of went…dark…there were flashes of claws, blood, more screaming but for the longest time, I didn't believe it was me."

_It's almost over now…almost over…_ The fury, the bitterness and the anguish drained away, leaving only exhaustion in its wake. "I came to five days later. Deaton and his associates had cleaned up the mess, made it look like a burglary gone horribly wrong. They falsified wills and estate papers so that it appeared in the case of my family's death I was to live with distant relatives in Florida. A week later, when all my injuries that I couldn't even remember sustaining had healed, I was shipped off and Nicholas' family took me in. No matter what anyone did, I wouldn't talk to any of them. I shut out the world, I felt numb to everything. Deaton tried a couple of times to get me to tell him the full story but I refused. My family was dead because of me, what else was there to tell?"

"It wasn't your fault." I was startled and stared up a Derek, who I barely remembered standing there. He was shaking, his face hard and cold but it wasn't directed at me. He knelt down gently in front of me but kept a small distance. His hands reached to touch my face, soothing away the wolfish mask that had descended over it. I grasped his wrists, whether to still his hands or push them away, I don't know. I barely had the strength to do either anymore. "Your family was attacked, you were a _child! _You're lucky to be alive, to have survived at all." A shudder wracked through him, like the thought of my death all those years ago chilled him to the bone. I shook my head vehemently, trying to ignore the comforting words.

"You don't understand!" I exclaimed softly. "They didn't just target my family; they targeted Nick's too. A year later, another Alpha attacked us; his brother was the one that had killed mine, he was out for revenge! Nick and I barely got away with our lives but his parents weren't so lucky. Someone else had to die because someone wanted to get at me!" Finally, the tears began burn down my cheeks and I dropped my head, still in the security of Derek's hands. "That's why I ran away Derek, why I'm still trying to run! I can't have history repeating itself again; I don't want to live through seeing the pack injured and killed; I don't want to see Peter and Nick die in a bloodbath…I don't want to live for the rest of my life knowing that my mate was murdered because of me…"

I barely registered Derek crushing me against his chest. I didn't bother to stop myself clinging to him like my only lifeline or to stop the tears and the sobs…I just let it happen. Fifteen years worth of torment, fear, anger and guilt had built up over the last two weeks and was finally being aired. Did this take away my fear or the anger? No, but the past was slowly disappearing leaving only the present in its wake. In the present, the emotions were easier to deal with, not having to reach back over decades to achieve any kind of closure. Derek had lost so many of his family too and in this moment, as he whispered into my ear words of comfort and promises of safety, I realized he was one of the few that would ever understand, that could relate and sympathize. He had been betrayed, he had trouble trusting in others just as I had; and I had foolishly spent the last fortnight running away from the only man on this earth that had experienced just as much anguish as I had…_and he wasn't running away_.

I couldn't tell you how long we knelt there in the dark clutching to one another; it could have been minutes, hours, days, I didn't really care. Eventually the sobs and moans dissolved into hiccoughs and shuddery breaths. I tried to press impossibly closer to Derek, nuzzling my nose against the crook of his neck where I inhaled deeply. Gradually, the warmth returned to my body and the pain behind my ribs waned.

Derek made to move away and I whimpered in protest. _No, please don't leave! _Derek chuckled and I felt my heart stop when I realized it was the first time I had see him properly smile…_wow! _

"I'm not going anywhere. Come here," Derek had shifted to lean against the log, beckoning for me to sit between his spread legs. Without a second thought, I went to him, reclining with my back to his chest. Immediately his arms were around me, mine resting over his. His chin found the juncture of my neck and shoulder so our faces were side by side. Nothing was said, it didn't have to be. So much at transpired so quickly that right now, sitting wrapped up in one another on the floor of the dark forest, it was more for comfort than for closure. We'd spent too long apart and slowly, gradually, we would reconnect.

After a time, when the first rays of light from the rising sun began to seep through the thick canopy, Derek turned his face to gently place kisses along my neck, lingering a little longer at the corner of my lips.

"I can't promise a lot of things," he began softly next to my ear. "I don't know what's waiting around the corner for us; I don't know where the Alpha pack is, and I don't know what their plans are. I don't know how well the betas will be able to handle this or what this will do to the pack. The only thing I know is that I need you here, next to me. We're stronger, better, together and together we can end it, once and for all. And…"

"And what?" I prompted, turning to look him in the eyes. The green-grey orbs flashed blood red for the briefest of seconds before returning to normal. There was a deeply possessive quality to that gaze that left me shivering.

"And…the only thing I can promise you is that you are _mine, _and I will do everything, _anything,_ in my power to keep you safe. You won't ever have to be afraid; you don't have to run anymore. With my life, I'll protect you."

The tears came fast and unbidden before I could possibly stop them. I spun in his hold to face Derek fully and as the sun rose over Beacon Hills, I kissed him with all the passion and warmth I could muster, hoping the words I could barely say would be translated through touch.

_No more running…This time, I'm standing…and this time, I'm fighting…_

_XoxoxoxoxoxoxoX_

**So there it is! Chapter 8 finally up and DONE! Hope I haven't grown rusty in my absence but that's not for me to decide; that's where you lovely people come in ;-) please leave reviews in the little box below and let me know what you think. I promise this time there won't be such a gap between updates! **

**Thanks again and lots of love – Lithium xo **


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